Wandering Home
by VirKatJol
Summary: Cam and Vala face one of the toughest times of their lives. Part 4 of Adria Series  Who'd Have known, no longer feel alone, Moving forward  Co written with dizzydame 19 chapters total
1. Chapter 1

Title: Wandering Home

Authors: Dizzydame and Virkatjol

Rating: NC-17

Summary: Cam and Vala face one of the toughest times of their lives. Part 4 of Adria Series

Disclaimer: Not ours.

AN: Thanks to Marieelise0928 for the fantastic BETA.

Jo: This part was a struggle at times for me. Thanks for keeping me sane Dizzy!

The phone shrills and it's not the normal tone. He stares at it like it's going to jump up and bite him, waiting to see if it does it again. He's just about to head into a very long, very boring, probably ninety percent pointless meeting.

It doesn't disappoint - it rings through again with the same urgent sounding tone.

He answers this time, actually believing that the device meant to make the sound. "Mitchell."

"This is Sergeant Philip Winters with the Colorado Springs Police Department."

What the fuck?

"How can I help you?" He's never been contacted by them before, the phone must be triggered to ring special for it, which is why he'd never heard it.

"There's been in incident and we need you to come to the Grand Valley Market right away." The voice on the other side sounds cold to Cam. It can't be good news.

"On my way." He doesn't spare the time to ask anymore question. There's only one person that has him as an emergency contact and it's Vala. His heart is already in his throat when he swings by Sam's office. "I have to go, just got a call from the police and they want me at Grand Valley…"

"The supermarket?" She's just as confused as he was, but at his nod, asks if he wants her to go with.

"Nope, I'm not sure what's up."

"Okay, call me if you need anything." He nods and jogs to the parking garage.

He doesn't really bother stopping for red lights on his way to the market. The mountain is fairly isolated so even with his traffic infractions it still takes him at least twenty minutes to get there, during which time he's conjured up all sorts of horrific scenarios in his head.

He parks his car beside Vala's and jumps out, barely remembering to grab his keys. He sees three police cars and his heart nearly stops.

Vala's at the front of the store, Tyler in her arms. He can see even from a distance that she's shaking and hugging him.

"Vala?" He calls out.

She turns and there are tears running down her face. "I don't - I don't know what happened-"

As soon as she starts to speak she's sobbing, bawling in a way that he can't ever remember seeing her do. "Vala, honey-"

She puts Tyler down, but keeps a tight hold on his hand. When Cam goes to reach for her she jerks back, raising her free hand to her mouth.

"You have to explain to me what happened," he says, voice gentle, trying to coax it out of her - and then it hits him. "Baby, where's Lyra?"

Vala just shakes her head. "I turned around for two seconds-"

"What?"

"He took her... he just... I tried to..."

"Mommy tried to fight him," Tyler says. Cam looks down at his five year old son. "Mommy punched him and the bad guy yelled but he ran away fast and no one could catch him. But Mommy tried and she almost did so don't be mad at her, Daddy."

"I lost her," Vala finally says. "Someone took her. I couldn't get her back-"

Cam feels like he's going to be sick. "Someone has our baby?"

His baby girl. His precious little daughter. "The police-"

"We're on it, sir." The person speaking is an officer. Cam hadn't even noticed him standing there. "We got a good description of the man from your wife, and we've already got an APB out."

"Did you get a make on the car?"

"No, sir," the police officer says.

"I had to come back - Tyler was-" Vala grips Tyler's hand more tightly and Tyler winces in discomfort but doesn't say anything to her about it. "I couldn't leave him, too."

His voice shakes but he has to be the rock. Vala is a mess. "We'll get her back, baby, we will." He reaches for her a second time, this time she lets him pull her into his embrace. "Why would anyone take her..."

It hits him then. It's probably not just anyone. "What are you thinking Cam?" His body went stiff next to hers and she can feel him tilting his lips towards her ear. The word that comes out of his mouth makes her stomach clench. She shakes her head and squeezes her eyes shut.

He whispers it once more. "Ori."

"We need to get Adria." Vala say's, nearing a panic attack and one of the officers must know the signs because she comes over to offer her a chair or to call an ambulance. Vala shakes her head and clings closer to Cam.

"Let me call the base. If it is what I think it is we'll need them to take over the investigation." It's only a moment before he gets a hold of Landry. "Sir, we've got a situation. One the Air Force might need to take control of." He pauses and then tells him about Lyra. The actual reasons can't be expressed clearly over the phone but Landry understands. He knows Cam's right too.

The strain in Cam's voice makes Vala feel worse. She doesn't know how she could have let this happen. How did someone manage to steal her baby? "What did he say?"

"He agrees. Also we need to go get Adria from school. We're all moving to base for awhile..." It's not that fun for the kids living on base, but if it really is the Ori, there isn't any safer spot for them. If they've taken one child what's to stop them from trying for a second or a third. Keeping Adria out of their hands is the top priority now. She's the Orici. The one they truly want.

Right now Cam's not sure if they took Lyra because they think she's the same or to try to use her as a bargaining chip for her sister.

"Can we go?" The young officer Cam addressed looks around and nods. "Thanks." Cam picks up Tyler and carries him back to His car. He secures him in his seat before he takes Vala's face in his hands. His lips brush hers gently, meaning to soothe her. "We'll go get Adria. I want everyone on base. We'll get your car later, Okay?"

Vala nods and a few more tears slip free. "I'm so scared for our baby."

"Me too, honey, me too."

xxxxxxxxxxx

They don't take the kids to the base that often anymore. They have a house now, and with Vala doing less work for the SGC there's just not as much need. Adria's also old enough - and more than smart enough - to notice things that she might have questions about. So far the "deep space radar technology" is working - more or less - but Cam and Vala together made the decision that none of their children were old enough to know the truth.

He isn't worried about Vala's car. He'll get his parents to go back for it later. They stopped just long enough for Tyler to get his things, though Vala started to shake and cry again at the sight of Lyra's diaper bag. Cam grabbed it, because he didn't want to just leave it, so he threw it into the back seat.

They drive straight to Adria's school. He parks in front, and turns around to look at Tyler. "Stay with your Mom, okay, buddy? I'm gonna go get Addy and then I'll be right back."

He feels bad for Tyler right now and he knows that having his big sister around will help him, since Vala still seems to be in a state of shock.

"Okay, Dad," Tyler says, his voice much more serious than usual. He climbs out of his child seat and into the front, putting his arms around Vala. Somehow, that makes Cam feel better.

He walks into Adria's school, straight into the office. It takes a minute to verify that he's on the list of people that can check her out and then to sign the necessary paperwork, but while he's doing that they're getting Adria out of her classroom.

He's standing just outside the office waiting when she comes running down the hallway, an office aide following distantly behind her. "Daddy?"

She only calls him Daddy now when she's scared or tired. The rest of the time it's _Dad!_ in that sassy voice. "Hey, sweetheart," he says, blinking back tears. She and Lyra do have the same eyes, Vala's eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"Something happened. Come on, your mom and your brother are in the car." He puts a hand on her back and starts to walk, but she stops.

"Why isn't Lyra with them?" Her eyes fill with tears. "Daddy?"

"She got... she was... someone took her. Your sister is... missing."

Adria doesn't say anything to that. Cam thinks she probably doesn't know what to say. She starts walking with him. When they get to the car, Tyler is still talking to Vala. He stops when the door opens, climbing onto Vala's lap. "Daddy, do I have to-"

"Yeah, buddy, sorry. Gotta get in the back. Go give your sister a hug." He feels badly since Tyler was obviously making Vala feel a little bit better, but he won't risk Tyler's safety.

"Where are we going?" Adria asks.

"The mountain."

"How long will we be there?"

He looks over at Vala, who answers this time. Her voice only breaks a little. "It might be a while, sweetheart."

"I need my-" Adria starts to say.

"No," Cam says, not even letting her finish. "Whatever you need, we'll have someone go get."

She starts to cry then and Cam feels bad. "What about Roger? He doesn't like strangers, and he won't come out and eat..."

Cam relents. "I'll go later and check on Roger."

"He hates you, Daddy," Adria sniffles. "But okay. Give him some milk, too."

Cam has no idea when he'll actually make it to the house, because he has no idea what comes next. He sees Vala's hands tightly clenched in her lap and reaches over to pry her fingers apart, letting her grip him instead. She gives him a grateful look.

He can tell that Adria probably wants to ask what happened but she's perceptive enough to know that right now isn't the best time. Tyler starts to talk to her, telling her about something he'd seen on TV that morning, and Cam is glad for the distraction from the tension. "You're okay," he whispers to Vala, squeezing her hand. "We're gonna get her back. They wouldn't hurt her. Not if they want..."

"But she's not," Vala whispers back. "And if they realize-"

Cam shakes his head abruptly. "No. Don't think like that. They wouldn't. And we don't even know-"

"Who, Daddy?" Adria's voice breaks in.

Cam winces. They should know better than to think anything will get past her. "No one."

"Dad!"

"Adria." His voice stops her from asking anything else. She leans back against the seat of the car, arms crossed, sulking, until they arrive at the mountain.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

There is a bustle of activity already when he and Vala walk into the conference room. Sam runs over and pulls Vala into her arms. The tears aren't stoppable and Cam can hear her renewed sobs against Carter's shoulder.

"What do we have?" Cam's trying not to breakdown himself. Every person is looking at him with obvious sympathy. It's like not one person knows what to do or say around him. It's uncomfortable but if the tables were turned and he was in here planning a way to get back Sam and Daniel's little boy he imagines he'd be looking at them the same way.

Daniel's the first to break out of the trance that seemed to take over the room at the entrance of the parents. "We've been able to tap into the local surveillance signals. It's easy now that everything is done wirelessly." He pulls up the footage that they retrieved from the store. The man grabs her just as Vala turns and Tyler is busy picking through the pile of apples. Neither of them seems to notice immediately. Then suddenly the hair on Vala's arms seems to stand up and she spins around and takes off after him. Tyler hears the commotion and runs after her. Cam feels sick watching. There's no sound on the video. He can almost hear her screaming for her daughter regardless.

"That's when he just disappeared... as if..."

"As if he was beamed out?" Daniel asks. Vala nods and walks over to the video player. She takes the remote from Daniel and rewinds it.

Arms bring her backwards and into a familiar chest. "Honey, I know-"

"I have to watch it. I can't believe I let someone get away with our baby..." He shushes her. His lips are cool against her ear. "It was only a second. I only turned my back for a second..."

"You weren't doing anything wrong, baby. The person... or whatever it is, that stole our baby was in the wrong. Not you." He tilts her head back towards him so she has to look at him. "Understand that no one blames you."

"I'm supposed to protect her." The remote is snatched from her hands and he plays it back, back to the part where she's tearing after the perpetrator.

The tap of his finger against the screen almost startles her. "That is someone protecting their child." He points to the kidnapper. "That is someone who's trying to destroy a family. We aren't going to let them. We're going to get our daughter back and we're going to make them pay."

Revenge. It's there on the tip of his tongue but he can't make this anymore personal then it already is. When things get too close that's when people get hurt.

"Rewind it." He does as she asks. "Play." They watch for a second and she yells pause. "Back it up a tiny bit." She leans in. "Look, right there."

"Ventrell?" Daniel's the one to see it. The reflection in the cooler. "I didn't know the Lucian Alliance was into kidnapping."

"Perhaps the Ori pay well." One of the unfamiliar Airmen in the room offers.

"Oh, no." Vala shakes her head. "The Ori don't pay. The Ori threaten and take. The Alliance isn't as strong as it once was and if they tangled with a super ship I doubt they'd be able to come out ahead. But men like Odai Ventrell have knowledge and that's worth a lot to the Ori. Enough to spare your life for the right price and a job well done."

They're all silent for a moment, staring at the screen.

The Ori have left them alone for the past nine years. An uneasy truce - a pact of mutual ignorance, live and let live - had seemed to be working.

Cam and Vala both realize that it might have been unrealistic to assume that the Ori had stopped looking for Adria. Nine years seems like a long time to them, but the Ori are like the Ancients; ageless, and apparently possessing some patience as well.

"They still can't interfere directly," Cam says. "They're still getting humans to do their dirty work. But baby, we can _beat_ humans. The Lucian alliance... they're all over the map. They're a mess. We can get her back."

Cam's talking directly to Vala right now, and she's looking right back at him, drinking in what he's telling her. "We've got plenty of contacts out there. We know they're not gonna hurt her, not if the Ori want her. So she's safe, and we're gonna get her back."

He looks over at Sam and the other officers, SG team leaders and men that serve under Cam, people he trusts. "Go dig up as many allies as we have against the Lucian alliance as you can find. We need to know what kind of ship he's in, who he's working with, and where he would hide out."

"I'll get in touch with the Tok'ra," Sam says. "I've still got some contacts there. My father was well respected among them."

Daniel follows right behind her after saying, "I'll get in touch with the people on Atlantis and alert them of the situation."

Cam looks at Vala, who seems calmer now that they have a plan. He knows that he needs to get on the phone now - Landry, Jack O'Neil, superiors in Washington - they'll want to know what's going on. No one has forgotten exactly what Adria is. On paper, she's not his daughter; she's the Orici, a weapon that they're carefully camouflaging.

But Cam has two other children and a wife that need him right now. "Carter," Cam says, just before she's out the door. "Can you hold the fort down until this gets settled?"

She looks relieved, if anything, and Cam realizes that she'd come to the same conclusion already - he can't run the base and the search for his daughter, it's too much of a conflict of interest. "Of course."

This is the best he can do - hand command over to her instead of waiting for someone to be sent to replace him. Sam won't lock him out of anything, and he'll continue to have a say in the decisions being made. "Thanks," he says. He can't quite work up a smile but he's grateful all the same.

"Go talk to your kids, Cam," Sam says, voice gentle. She reaches out to squeeze his arm, and then gives Vala another hug. "I'll call you as soon as we find something."

He can't help but hug her. "Thanks for understanding."

"I'm just glad that you do." Carter lets him go and pokes his shoulder. "Seriously, get out. We'll call you when we've got something. I want you to go be with each other right now."

Cam puts his arm around Vala's shoulders and pulls her along with him out of the room.

Daniel watches them leave, making sure their truly out of earshot. "Sam, I just..."

The tears sting her eyes. Just thinking about something like this happening to them. Their son missing, stolen right out from under her nose. Her stomach clenches. "I can't imagine it."

"That woman has epic control. I don't know if _I'd_ be that composed if Aiden were the one gone." Daniel forgoes his usual control at work and tugs Sam close. He kisses her head and both of them have to suppress the urge to race down to check on him. "He's alright. No harm can come to him in the mountain."

It's hard to make herself believe it. Normally the sense of security that comes with being so far underground almost makes it oppressive. But right now Sam's glad. She's still shaky, but being so deep within the earth makes her calmer.

"Let's get Lyra back."

"How else are we supposed to marry Aiden off to her in a few years if we don't?" He gets punched, lightly, for suggesting it.

"No time for jokes."

"Who said I was joking. Then the team really would be family."

"What about Teal'c?" Sam grins, it's nice to lighten the mood, even for a moment.

Daniel touches the tip of her nose with his index finger. "Well I'm not volunteering to be the one to bring him in..."

Tyler and Adria race over to them when they get back to the suite of rooms they still have on base. Cam and Vala pick them up. Daughter with father, mother with son. They carry them to the bed and the four of them sit in a pile. As closely as possible.

"They find her yet, Daddy?" Adria whispers against his shoulder.

"Not yet, sweetheart." Cam sees the tears welling up in Vala's eyes again. "We will though. We're not going to let them keep her."

"Maybe... If I wasn't..." Adria's thoughts have been muddled all day, at least since she found out about Lyra. She knows there's something to do with her. Her surgery from years before.

"Don't you dare think anything, young lady." Vala's stern. She won't be letting her daughter take any blame. "This is the fault of people on the planet that need to cause harm. Destroy people. We won't let them do that to us."

"We're a family." Tyler pipes in. He likes to help his mom rally the troops.

A smile ghosts across Cam's face. "That's right, slugger. A team, a family. We're going to show the people that mess with us that they don't know what they are in for."

"Momma stole a ship-"

"More than one, darling." She corrects her son. A little bit of pride in her voice.

"She can get my baby sister back. You can help too, daddy."

Everyone is silent for a bit, holding, touching, Cam kisses Vala's temple often. Just needing a connection.

"Do you think she's really scared?" Adria looks back and forth between her parents. She can see her mom's face crumpling into a new round of tears. Vala nods at her and reaches over Tyler for a hug.

Cam's not idle, he rubs Adria's back. "I bet she's brave though. I know she's wanting her family as much as we want her back. But Lyra is made of tough and spitfire. She'll give as good as she gets. They have no idea how much she can demand for only being two."

"Yeah," Adria agrees. "Like last week when she wouldn't eat anything for like half a day because Mom wouldn't give her a cookie."

Cam manages a laugh. "Just like that."

Adria wraps her arms around Cam. She's a skinny child, tall for her age, almost gangly but Cam can see the beauty she'll grow into. He looks at Tyler, at his little boy, and he can almost see what Tyler will grow into, too. His cheeks are still chubby, his hair light - never quite the blonde that Cam's was but lighter than Vala's and Adria's.

He's supposed to start school in the fall and Cam keeps teasing Vala about the fact that he's not sure which of them is dreading it more - Vala having to let her little boy go off, or Tyler not getting to stay with his mother every day.

But Vala always responds the same way - that she'll be fine, because she still has one baby left. They've never actually talked about having another child, beyond the occasional affirmation that three seems like a pretty perfect number to both of them, and right now the idea makes Cam choke up for the first time since the whole thing started.

"Adria, could you take..." Vala doesn't even have to finish the sentence.

Adria teaches over and takes Tyler's hand. "Let's go watch tv."

Tyler looks at Vala, confused, but when Vala nods he follows Adria away.

Vala crawls into the spot that Adria's vacated, resting her head on Cam's shoulder. She starts to cry without even realizing it. "She wanted me to hold her."

"She always wants you to hold her," Cam says, shifting automatically back into comforting mode. "Don't do that to yourself."

"I made her stay in the cart, because I needed my hands free. Tyler wanted to show me... he said he wanted to pick out..." She presses her face against his shoulder. His shirt grows damp but he doesn't care.

"Vala, stop," he says, sitting up. It dislodges her from her position, clinging to him. He looks at her and then cups her face. "This is not your fault, and right now we just both need to concentrate on getting her back. We can work through beating ourselves up over letting this happen once we have her back."

Vala takes a deep breath and nods. She knows that Cam is right. "Right now, we need to find her."

He leans in and kisses her. Her lips are salty from the tears and that gnawing feeling in his stomach intensifies. "I love you," he says, mouth against hers.

She doesn't even kiss him back, but he knows it isn't because she doesn't feel anything. This is their relationship, a give and take, and right now she needs something and he'll be strong to provide it for her. He knows that when this really hits him, if something goes wrong, if the worst happens... she'll be there for him, too.

The little voice brings them out of their silent comfort.

"Daddy?" The word is repeated through a large yawn.

Their son is standing at the doorway with his sister. Both of them are already ready for bed. "Yeah, little dude?"

"Can we sleep here?"

A glance at the clock confirms that it is actually bed time. Time has flown by while he's been holding his wife. Her breathing evened out into a dreamless sleep awhile back but he just kept stroking her, running his hands everywhere, trying to soothe her aching heart.

"Yeah, let me get your mom situated." He gently angles her down to a reclining position but when he goes to get up she clings to him. Desperate even in sleep. It breaks his heart. He'll just have to sleep in what he's wearing. It's not worth it, disturbing her slumber. "Adria, can you get all the lights?"

"Yeah, Daddy." Tyler climbs in on the opposite side of Vala while his sister gets the lights. Soon the whole family is under the covers and soft snores echo through the room.

Cam can't sleep though. It feels like he needs to watch over them all.

Keep them safe.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Vala wakes up a couple hours later. She has a moment of disorientation, realizing that she's not in her own bed at home and that there are entirely too many bodies in bed. She tries to shift, moving Tyler off of her a bit, and then it hits her.

Lyra.

Her baby.

Her little girl. The one that is fearless when it comes to anything except the big stuffed giraffe that her grandparents got her. She walks up to anyone, cries for attention, bosses her big brother around relentlessly. She potty trained before she was two and Vala swears that it's because she was just fussy enough to not want to ever wear a messy diaper. She wants to wear the frilly pink tutu skirt that Cam's mother made her every day, but she wants to wear absolutely nothing else with it, streaking around the house in a little blur of pink tulle and black hair.

Vala lays there, minutes slipping by, just thinking of everything she loves about her daughter. She feels a deep rolling pain, and for a moment feels like she's going to be sick. Inevitably, she begins to think about earlier that day, when Lyra was taken, and what she could have done different, what she _should_ have done differently. She imagines how it should have gone; Lyra in her arms, safe in her grasp, instead of sitting in the cart. She imagines chasing after Ventrell and catching up to him instead of watching him get away. She imagines him in the ground, in pain, after she's kicked him in a particularly sensitive area. She envisions it so hard she can almost convince herself it happened, but then she opens her eyes and the illusion is shattered.

She gets out of bed, gingerly moving away. Adria's on the other side of Cam, undisturbed, and Tyler sleeps like the dead. She manages to move away without waking any of them. She's still dressed, and doesn't even bother to look in the mirror on her way out, pausing only to pick up Cam's BDU jacket and drape it over her shoulders.

She doesn't really think about where to go. It's only when she runs into the solid mass of Teal'c that she becomes aware of herself again. Her feet are cold; she hadn't put on shoes. His hand against her arm feels like it's radiating heat. "Vala Mal Doran."

Teal'c insists on calling her by the same name; she's tried to ask him before why, even tried to express that it's an unpleasant reminder of her past, but over time she's come to realize that she can't change her past just by changing her name. She's wondered if perhaps that's why he did it, then wondered again if maybe she's giving him too much credit.

Right now she doesn't care. She lets him lead her without even asking where they're going, and finds herself somewhat unsurprised when she looks up and they're in Sam's lab.

Daniel and Sam are both there already, heads bent together deep in conversation. There's stubble on Daniel's cheeks and Sam suppresses a yawn. Vala realizes that though she still feels exhausted, she must have slept longer than she'd thought.

"Vala," Sam says, sounding slightly surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I believe she could not sleep," Teal'c says, answering for her.

Vala gives them a wan smile. "What Muscles said."

"Of course," Daniel says. They all look sympathetic.

Teal'c takes a seat beside Daniel, pulling a laptop in front of him and beginning to study it. Vala's curiosity gets the better of her. "What are you..."

She trails off, walking over to them. There are maps spread out, star charts and printouts, a sheet of gate addresses. Sam starts explaining to her that they're narrowing down their search options; they've only got four SG teams available, six if Landry agrees to sign off on the volunteers that want to help look for Lyra that aren't actually serving on teams, which means they need to find the most likely options first. There are two ships they can utilize, and a possible third that will be returning back to Earth within 48 hours.

They've also got a task force on earth looking for her, just in case Ventrell hasn't left the planet yet.

Vala finds herself stunned, almost speechless. She hadn't actually thought that her missing daughter would be a top priority for the SGC. "How..."

"She's important," Daniel says. "All of your children are. With Jack and General Landry on our side, it wasn't as hard as we feared it would be. No one wants to see any of your children in the hands of the Ori"

He doesn't have to explain why. Adria's the only one of the children that have shown any direct impact on the Ori, but they also know how far reaching the Ori's influence can be. There's always been the possibility that it wasn't Adria herself they changed, but Vala.

They've fought for years to convince the SGC that their children were perfectly normal and now it's turned out to be a good thing that there were still suspicions. Now the fact that their children might become weapons works in their favor; it means the SGC will throw their full weight behind finding her.

Vala feels tears on her face again, but this time it's not out of despair. It's a far cry from having her little girl back, but Vala actually begins to feel hope. She wipes the tears from her cheeks and then squares her shoulders, sliding onto the stool seat beside Sam. "I want to help."

"Vala, you should go be with your family," Sam says, frowning. "We can handle this."

"I know you can, Samantha," Vala says. "I trust you. But right now, I need to do something."

Sam starts to argue again, but Daniel puts his hand on her arm. They have a wordless conversation, Daniel silently imploring Sam to just let Vala stay, to let her help, and Sam nods, agreeing to it. She hands Vala a couple of sheets of paper to cross-reference, and then goes back to work herself.

xxxxxxxxxxx

When his eyes open and she's not there the first thing he does is panic. He reaches around for Vala and she's not there. In general he dislikes waking up without her but right now missing her presence feels even emptier. Tyler's rolled closer to him since she vacated her spot and Adria is right behind him. Both of the kids seem to be sleeping soundly still. The clock insists that it's six am. He somehow managed to sleep for a few hours.

Both children will sleep for a couple more hours at the least. Adria used to wake up impossibly earlier but as she's gotten older sleep has become her best friend. Tyler has always been a great sleeper. Lyra was... is usually snuggling in bed with them asleep when he wakes up. She never wakes them, just sneaks in sometime in the night and falls back to sleep.

Cam used to complain to Vala about it and she'd just smile, knowing how much he loved their alone time in the morning, but was never upset to have her baby girl there first thing. He'd give anything to wake up with her there now.

His arms cup around Adria and lift her so he can get out of bed. She wakes and he whispers to her. "I'm going to find your mother. Go back to sleep."

"'Kay, dad." She yawns and as soon as he's tucked her back in she's sleeping again. He looks down at himself. A complete train wreck is what he sees. Rumpled, wrinkled clothes, he knows his chin is in need of a shave and a shower might help the smell. But finding Vala is more important. Odds are that she's in need of a shower just as badly.

He slips on his shoes and notices hers are still there so he picks them up before leaving the room. It doesn't take him long to locate her. She's working, of course, his wife has never been one to let others do for her. She's right in the thick of everything. No one else in the room matters as he enters Sam's lab.

"Baby?" Her eyes find his. So much pain, a little seems to ease when she sees him, but not enough.

"I couldn't sleep..."

"I brought your shoes." He walks over to her and puts them on. Her feet are cool, but not freezing, so he gives them a quick rub before slipping her foot inside. "I was worried when I woke up alone."

She's touching his hair as he stands back up, letting her palm slide down his face to cup his cheek. "You were hardly alone." There's a small smile.

The urge to hold her is too strong and he slips his arms around her waist. The other people in the room may be staring, he doesn't know, doesn't care, all that matters is Vala. "I didn't have you there. I don't like waking up with you not wrapped around me."

"I..." He shushes her and just hugs her tighter.

He can feel that she's on the verge of another bout of tears. "What are you working on?" The explanation is quick and, like it did for her earlier, it gives him enormous amounts of hope. It hasn't even been twenty-four hours yet. There is a plan in place and a whole lot of people are looking for her. "Can I help?"

Vala nods and hands him half her assignment. He finds a stool and pulls it up next to hers. A hand is left on her back, it's harder to do the work one handed but he can't stop touching her right now.

She doesn't want him to, either.

They work quietly with the rest of the team for another hour until Daniel breaks away. He looks hesitant, and sounds even more so, but finally says, "I need a break. I'm not as young as I used to be and right now, pulling an all nighter just means I'm starting to make mistakes."

Cam understands, though. "Go on, get some sleep. You too, Sam. Go give that kid of yours a hug."

His words are weighted and there is a moment of silence while they all think about the little girl that probably wants a hug from her parents very, very badly right now.

"Come on," Daniel says. "We'll nap for a couple hours and then be back."

Vala nods. Any other time, any other situation, and she'd insist that they sleep as much as they need but right now she's anything but selfless. They are the best and that's who she wants helping her find her little girl.

Teal'c excuses himself along with Sam and Daniel, without saying anything. Once they're gone Vala slumps forward, clearly struggling for some stability again.

"Hey," Cam says, voice strong, anchoring her. "We're ok."

"I know _we_ are," she says, snapping back without meaning to.

He puts down his pen. "Come on. Tyler's probably awake now. I left Addy watching him, but we'll have to get someone else to. She's not old enough to be babysitter all day long yet."

He reaches for her arm but she tugs it back, shaking her head. "I'll stay and keep working."

"Vala." Cam's voice is firm. "We have two children that are scared out of their minds right now. If they manage to track down Ventrell, we'll be going with the team to get our daughter and we don't know how long that will take. My folks will watch them for as long as we need them to, but all they'll know is that Mom and Dad took off. Right now is not the time to abandon them before we have to."

That sparks her temper. "It's barely been four hours since I left the bed with them. It's a far cry from _abandonment_."

"Tell that to the five year old who doesn't know where his baby sister is." Cam stands his ground, knowing that's the only way to get through to Vala.

"Fine." She glares at him, stalking out of the room. She maintains the anger until they reach the door to their quarters and push it open. As soon as Tyler comes barreling at her, everything is forgotten. She picks him up and hugs him so tightly he has to squirm and push her away so he can breathe.

"I'm hungry, Mommy," Tyler says. "Can we go eat pancakes?"

The last thing Vala wants to do is eat right now but she thinks about Cam's words, and nods. "We'll go eat breakfast and then your father and I have to go back to work."

"Why?" Tyler's eyes grow watery, as if he's reacting to the tension without even understanding it.

"Because," Adria says, reaching for his hand. "They have to go find Lyra and bring her home."

"Oh." Tyler looks up at Cam and then Vala. "Okay then. But we can have pancakes first?"

"Get your shoes on, we'll go down to the cafeteria. I bet they have pancakes." Cam waits for them to get something on their feet. Pajamas are a fine attire for the SGC commissary.

"Lyra likes pancakes..." Tyler remembers eating them with peanut butter and helping her add more when she ran out. "I wish she could have breakfast with us too..."

"Me too, baby, me too." Vala takes his hand in hers as they leave to walk to the cafeteria.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

It's not too far from their room but everyone they see on the way averts their eyes. There are a couple that stop to pat Cam on the shoulder, a comforting touch showing their support. Not one person has anything to say that can make it any better. So they don't say anything at all.

"You guys sit here, Adria and I will go get us all pancakes." Cam motions for them to take a spot at a table in the corner. Out of the way in case the kids need to talk or one of them breaks into a crying jag. Adria's happy to help and grabs boxes of juice for them all while Cam gets a plate of pancakes and syrup. He throws on a couple little packages of peanut butter for Tyler.

"Dad?" She's got an armful of beverages and a handful of utensils. "Shouldn't we be talking to the police? Why are we at the mountain?"

"Well, honey, there are some people who aren't big fans of your mom and dad."

"That's dumb." Adria thinks her parents are pretty good. She's met some of her friend's parents and knows now how good she has it. "Why would they want my little sister though? I mean if they don't like you guys..."

"They think..." He's not sure how to explain it to her. They haven't told her about her origins yet. "They just want to hurt us. Taking one of our babies - that's about as deep as you can cut."

"I suppose. But why Lyra? She's just a baby. She can't _do_ anything. She's not super smart yet and she just gets into everything and cries when she doesn't get her way..."

They walk back to the table and he just shrugs his shoulders at Adria. "I don't know, Addy."

"Don't know what?" Vala asks, she's got Tyler on her lap and he's already digging into the pancakes, putting two on is plate and ripping open the peanut butter.

Cam shakes his head and Vala picks up on that signal easily enough, dropping the line of questioning.

"I think we should call your mother," she says to Cam. "The kids should stay with them."

Cam's slightly surprised to hear that, especially considering the fact that she'd seemed to agree that right now they should all be together. Adria seems equally unhappy to hear that idea. "Mom, why?"

"Because underneath a mountain is no place for children," Vala says. "And your father and I might have to take a trip soon. I don't want things to be left to the last minute if we have to leave abruptly."

As much as he doesn't like the idea, he can see her point. Having the kids shuttled around by SGC officers they don't know might be even more confusing than a nice little vacation at the grandparents. "I'll give them a call once we're done eating," Cam says.

Vala seems relieved, like she'd expected more of a fight. Adria, however, is clearly fighting tears and Cam's heart goes out to her. Vala looks pained, too, when she says, "Darling, I want to know that you're somewhere safe."

"Where is safer than here? Mom, _everyone_ around here has a gun."

"What about Roger?" Cam says, switching tactics when he can see that Vala's going to argue. "Don't you want to go see him?"

"Gramma and Grandpa can check on him," she says. "I don't want to leave you."

That part catches Tyler's attention and Cam's parental senses warn him that a two-fold meltdown is imminent. "Hey, listen, just go spend the day with your grandparents, okay? And one of us will come get you tonight. We've got a lot of work to do here anyway, and you know that you can't be in the labs with us."

"Just for the day?" Adria asks, wanting to be certain before she capitulates to anything.

"Just the day," Cam promises.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Wendy and Frank are quick to agree. They clearly know what's going on, though Cam can't remember calling them himself. They extend the offer, saying they're here for whatever Cam and Vala need, and Cam hopes they meant it because when he shows up at their house he has a third child with him - Aiden Jackson, Sam and Daniel's son. They'd both realized that they'd be spending just as many hours searching for Lyra as Cam and Vala would be, and neither of them wanted to leave Aiden on base all day long.

"He'll be alright?" Wendy's only spent a little time with Aiden.

Cam nods. "He's a lot like Lyra. Just keep him entertained and getting his way and you're free and clear of the tantrums."

Just the thought of Lyra makes Vala tuck herself closer to Cam. His arm automatically gathers her into his side and she rests her head on his shoulder.

"He's good friends with Tyler. They play well together..." She peeks over Wendy's shoulder, making sure Adria is out of earshot. "Addy... she knows something is up. Something more than just her sister was stolen. We haven't..." She sighs, still unsure what the right thing to do would be. She's only nine, going on ten. She can't possibly understand everything yet. "So don't mention anything specific, please."

His parents know enough. Nothing that is extremely classified, but they know about how Adria came to be. Cam and Vala told them. It only seemed right that they understand because one day Adria was going to need to know. Cam wanted to be prepared for her reaction, no matter what it was. He dreaded the day she discovered that he wasn't her biological father. When that day came, hopefully not any time soon, Vala and he wanted her to have another place to go to talk about it.

"We understand." Frank probably knew better than most. His whole career was also shrouded in secrecy. "Anything else we need to know?"

"Call us if you need anything. If something happens, if... anything. Alright?" Vala's still paranoid, leaving her children here makes her jumpy. She has a need to have them within arms' reach, not that that prevented her baby from getting taken...

Wendy pulls Vala from Cam's arm and takes her into her own. She's never lost a child like they have but she feels it just as deeply. That little girl, like all their children, is a bundle of pure love and joy. "They'll be safe." The words are whispered against her ear. "We'll keep them safe."

"Thanks, mom." She feels Cam's hand rubbing up and down her back adding comfort to the embrace from Wendy. "We need to get back."

Cam grabs her hand and they walk back to the car. "Call us..."

Wendy and Frank wave them off before going back inside.

xxxxxxxxx

The drive back to the mountain is filled with nerves. The atmosphere of the car is thick and Vala is hoping she doesn't randomly burst into tears.

"We need to decide when to tell her." She's tired. Exhausted. "We can't just go on like this. The hiding..."

"It wasn't a problem. It hasn't been..." Cam's the one who's going to get the brunt of her anger. The hurt and betrayal will all be directed at him. He's afraid of losing her. "We've been clear of Ori threats for so long I'd just been hoping we could go on forever."

"She needs to know. It's her right to know who she is." Vala clasps his hand.

"I just..." With all the stress on them right now he doesn't need this conversation. "I don't want to lose her."

She understands. Really, but she doesn't want her to find out on her own, somehow. "It's better if we tell her than to take the risk of her discovering it."

"Fifteen..." It's still years away and he can not think about it a little longer. "How about then? Old enough to understand, young enough to not hate me forever…"

"She won't hate you." They pull into a parking spot in the mountain and Vala stills him, unbuckling her seatbelt she slides across to sit next to him. "She's going to be hurt, upset, angry. But you're her dad. She can't stay that way forever."

"We're going to tell her I'm not her dad. She'll just see me as a liar who's been pretending..."

"No, she will know that you have so much love for her that it never mattered who her biological father was. It only mattered that you loved her anyway." Vala kisses his cheek before tipping his face so she can brush a soft kiss against his lips. "She'll never stop loving you. Not even because of this."

The worry collected in the pit of his stomach says otherwise. "God, I hope you're right... I love her, so much... I don't want to hurt her. She's been through hell and she's only nine."

"I know, darling. We'll wait until she's fifteen. It's a good age. She'll probably be angry at both of us all the time by then anyway."

A small laugh forces its way through the tension. "A bright side." They sit there in silence for a bit, just holding each other. Not wanting to go in and face the fact that their other daughter is still missing.

Eventually Vala moves, reluctantly. "We should go help." At his nod they both climb out the driver's side.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

They don't stop for lunch, barely stop to speak until they have a list of gate addresses narrowed down and cross referenced, seven options for them to explore.

Seven – one digit but it seems so daunting.

"What now?" Vala asks, staring down at the paper like it's going to just magically reveal something.

"Now," Sam says, "We need approval. Before we can contact any of these planets we need to clearance and it would probably be best if we find some of the SG team members that have visited these planets to make contact."

"I'm on that," Cam says as he scans the list. He's in charge of scheduling teams for offworld missions; he knows right away what teams have been where, and which ones are available right now. He looks back up at Sam. "You handle clearance, I'll start getting in touch with the people we need."

As soon as they've gotten approval (which, thankfully, comes quickly) and Cam finds no resistance among his men when he pages them to the briefing room. He has the respect and admiration of every one of them, something that pleases him greatly and makes him realize that he's not all that bad as a leader.

Cam and Vala are not allowed to sit in on any of the conversations, which is downright infuriating to Vala... but Vala's reputation as a loose cannon hasn't been entirely dampened yet, despite her years of relatively quiet living on earth.

Cam could probably intimate his way in, but he doesn't want to leave her in the shape she's in right now. She's practically vibrating with tension and energy, wanting to do something besides just sit there. She calls to check on Adria and Tyler at least once an hour. Cam tries to make himself as useful as he can in his limited capacity. He spends a while on the phone with General Landry; he wants a ship of his own, ready for deployment as soon as they get the first lead to follow up on. Landry has kind words for him and Cam knows that he means them.

The answers don't come immediately. Information trickles, but doesn't flow; they are offered assistance, and they take it gratefully, but hours slip by and at the end of the day they're still left waiting.

"We need to pick them up." Vala's never one to break a promise to her kids if she can help it.

"Let's make a phone call first." They're in his office, but there's too much activity around. He tugs her to her feet and they end up in their quarters. Cam's dialing his parents and they answer on the first ring. "Hey, Mom, can I talk to Addy, please?"

There's a slight pause but soon a little voice is there. "Daddy?" She's back to that moniker now. His heart already clenches.

"Yeah, pumpkin. It's me. Mom's here too." Vala's tucked against him, she's rarely not touching him now. He doesn't mind, it keeps him grounded too.

"You coming to get us now?"

"Well... We were hoping you wouldn't mind spending the night there. It's late and..."

The sigh is overly dramatic, he shouldn't expect anything less at this point. "You promised." He can see the pout, lower lips turned out, eyes filling with tears.

"We did, I know... It's been a long day, honey and mom and I are beat up-"

"You're hurt?" He regrets using that term after hearing the panic in her voice.

"No, No, just mentally. We're just..."

"I know, dad." She huffs into the phone. It's not that she doesn't like her grandparents. She wants to be there for her parents though. She has a deep desire to help them find her little sister. Something in her belly tells her everything is her fault. No one's said so. It's just a feeling. "Can I talk to mom?"

He passes the phone without a word. "Hi darling." Vala luxuriates in her daughter's voice when she replies. "What can you ask me but not dad?"

"It's just... You promised tonight." Vala's eyes turn up and find Cam's.

"We did. We'll come get you, if that's what you need." She's an expert in psychology when it comes to her children. She knows that Adria never wants to seem needy. She likes independence and Vala knows how to use that fact.

"I think I can help. Help find my sister."

"You can help most by being with your brother and Aiden." She knows they've won as the next sigh passes her lips.

"'Kay... Tomorrow? Can we come back to the mountain then?"

"Yes, Addy. Tomorrow."

"Promise?"

"We both promise." Cam confirms it into the phone. They both tell her they love her before she passes the phone to her baby brother. He's not as anxious as Adria, but still sad he's not going to get to sleep in the same place as his mother. They give their love to him after explaining everything and then talk to his parents quickly before hanging up.

Alone. Together. It feels like forever since this has happened. It's too bad neither of them are in the mood for anything.

"Figures, the first time I've got you to myself in months and we're too exhausted to do anything but sleep." Cam kisses her forehead as they slide down the bed. They're still in their clothes, again, but neither of them can be bothered to care.

Cam wakes up a couple of hours later. He's hot, the base room stuffy and lacking in ventilation. He sits up and rubs his hands over his face before frustratedly yanking his shirt over his head. It instantly feels better, so he kicks off his shoes and then slides out of his pants, too.

The only light in the room filters in from under the door. It's barely enough to see anything but he still has the thought that Vala is probably warm, too. He reaches over and turns on the lamp beside the bed, bathing the room in a dull yellow glow. He pushes her hair back from her face. Her skin is clammy with sweat and he realizes his instinct was right. He nudges her gently until she moves into a more accommodating position and then tugs her shirt over her head. She has on a pale pink bra underneath and he fingers the straps, remembering when she'd first worn it for him - a little weekend trip they'd taken a few months before, leaving the kids with his parents. He loves those getaways where it's just the two of them.

He's working on her pants when she starts to actually wake up. "Cameron?"

"Shh," he says. "Go back to sleep."

Her hand reaches out, fumbles and lands on his wrist. "What are you doing?""

"Taking your clothes off," he says. "It's hot in here."

"Mm," she murmurs, relaxing back against the bed. She trusts him implicitly, like she wouldn't know how to not do it anymore. She doesn't say anything else and he thinks that she's gone back to sleep until he's done undressing her and he lays back down. His head hasn't quite hit the pillow when she grasps his hand. 'Cameron?"

"Yeah, honey?" He asks, really just wanting to sleep again now.

There's silence, but it's a heavy silence. He reaches for her, gathering her in close. She puts a hand on his chest and the warmth of the connection radiates through him. "I need..."

"What?" Cam says. "Anything, baby, you know that."

"I need my baby."

Her shoulders tremble again and he holds her tightly enough to steady them both. He presses his mouth to her temple, her jaw, her neck.

He's not expecting her to press her body against his so forcefully, to cling to him quite so hard. Something in him shifts and by the time it registers her mouth is on his and her fingers are in his hair, desperate kissing, wet and deep.

He breaks away just long enough to say, "Are you sure-"

"Don't," Vala says, voice ragged. "Don't say... anything. Just..."

She doesn't have to ask again. He won't make her do that. He's not hard but her hand grasps him and his body responds while his mind is still playing catch up. She rolls over onto her back, tears rolling down her face, and he tries to kiss them away. He covers her body with his and lowers his head down, pressing his face to her breast while he rubs her clit and tries to get her wet enough that this won't be uncomfortable for her. A sound of pleasure escapes her throat and is followed by a muffled sob.

He eases himself into her and once he's fully inside he just stops, staying here. Her arms hold him so tightly that it feels like she's trying to climb inside of him and he holds back just as tight.

He starts rocking against her. Neither of them can bear to be apart so he'll use the rolling of his hips and the press of his cock deep inside her to bring her to that plane that she needs. A place where she only feels good. Where she can get away from the pain, just for a moment.

Vala's sure there will be blood on her fingernails after they're done, she digging in so tightly - wanting all his weight. She wants to be crushed by his body, surrounded by him. Nothing, no one, can make it better for her, but Cam can come close.

The little noises she's making now are mingled with her gasping sobs. He lets his lips travel to her ear and he starts shushing her. Her request for silence only held so long. He can't take the pain that's in her voice as she reacts to the pleasure. He knows that she's getting closer to orgasm.

Her body tugs and flutters around him and he groans against her neck. That seems to be a cue and she's arching and crying. Sobs wrack her body as she comes. Cam rocks through her climax and when he feels it ending he lets himself go. It's powerful, despite the circumstance, or perhaps because of it.

When they're both finished he tries to roll off her. He's heavy and she's so small, but her arms hold him tightly.

"Not..." Her voice is barely there. "Don't leave me."

"Oh baby..." His lips travel everywhere they can reach. He thinks about making a joke but skips. "I'm never leaving you."

"But I lost our little girl." Her head is tucked tightly against his neck as she starts crying more. He wedges his arms around her and rolls them over. His cock is still inside her, soft, but there and he's careful not to slip free. As they move he can feel her muscles gripping at him, desperate to hold him there.

"Someone else took her, honey. You didn't just leave her somewhere. You'd never do that. You're the best mother I know."

"I just want her back." Her tears are slowing and she lets herself relax into his chest.

Cam is touching her everywhere, hands on her back, in her hair, down her arms. The movement never stops or slows, just a steady caress.

"I'll get our Lyra back. Don't worry. Ventrell will pay for what he's done to our family too."

She sighs and snuggles in closer. "I love you."

"I love you too. More than you can ever know."

"I know." She smirks and sniffles. "I know."

With that she falls back to sleep. Cam tugs the blankets back over them and he follows her to dreamland.

xxxxxxxxx

Vala wakes up before Cam the next morning. She thinks about getting him up too but she knows it won't be long before he wakes on his own. She slips into the living area of their quarters and picks up the phone, dialing the Mitchell's number.

Adria answers on the second ring. "Mommy?"

"I'm surprised you're up so early," Vala says, looking at the clock.

"I wanted to call you but Granma made me wait. She said you and Daddy needed your sleep."

It doesn't surprise Vala that Wendy and Frank are up. They're still early risers. "Is your brother asleep?"

"Uh huh," Adria says. "Him and Aiden are sleeping still. Did you find Lyra yet, Mommy?"

Vala shuts her eyes, steeling herself to say what is certainly the painful truth. "No. Not yet. But we know who has her."

"And you're gonna go get her and bring her home?" Adria sounds so hopeful and though Vala frequently laments hot quickly she's growing up right now she realizes how young her oldest child really is, still.

"We're going to try."

"Is Daddy awake? Can I talk to him?"

"He's still asleep, but I'll have him call you the minute he gets up," Vala says.

"Okay." Adria's voice is very small and very scared. "I love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart. Tell your grandparents that I'll call back soon to check in."

"Okay."

Vala hangs up the phone and then just stares down at it.

"Vala!" He jolts awake. Hands searching for her. Cam's eyes snap open and he's searching the room for her. She's up and rushing back to bed, a robe hanging loosely around her form.

She doesn't remember him ever having a nightmare, or waking up so harshly. "You alright?" She sits close to him her fingers stroke his cheek and run through his hair.

"Yeah..." He is, he thinks. "I don't know why I woke up like that. I suddenly had a feeling that you were... gone. I must have..." Panicked? Yeah, just a bit. He's embarrassed now though.

Her lips are cool against his forehead as she kisses him. "I just talked to Adria."

"Yeah?"

"They're good. She wanted to talk to you, but-"

He can't be annoyed at her - he wouldn't have disturbed her either. "You should have woken me."

It doesn't deserve a reply so she just tells him with her eyes that she knows how it would work had their roles been reversed and he drops it.

"We'll call back in a bit, Tyler was still sleeping." He nods and cups the back of her head, pulling her mouth to his. "Baby, last night..."

"Thank you." She's curling back up in bed now. Laying next to him, letting him scoop her into his arms and hug her body to his.

His lips trace the contours of her shoulder. "No need. I love you. We needed each other. Needed the closeness, that connection. It was good we didn't get the kids."

"Sometimes I think I need you too much." Vala's shaking a bit, thinking about losing him too. It tears her apart. "I couldn't bear it if..."

"Shhh, baby, your mind goes a million miles an hour into the wrong territories sometimes." Cam just holds her. She falls asleep for a little while and he keeps watch. His bad dream still lingers, even though he doesn't know what he dreamt.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

He's about to wake her when she yawns and stretches.

"Morning, sunshine." His hand smooths up and down her arm.

"How long was I asleep?" Vala searches for a clock. There is so much to get done, how could he let her just sleep like that?

He can feel her tense. "We'll go down and help after a shower." He feels her about to protest. "Together. To save time, water and to let me play with your hair… to comfort myself."

She gives him a look but can't argue with him. It does sound like a good idea. "Quickly though."

"Fast as we can, promise."

Despite knowing they need to hurry, under the spray of the water, she lingers. Lyra's been gone for almost 48 hours now. They both know that if anyone had found anything, they'd have been awoken.

But there might still be news.

He washes her hair, like he'd promised he'd do, and then cleans himself quickly with some help from her. He gets out first, drying while she stays under the spray. When she's done he has a towel waiting on her, wrapping her up in it. She moves past it, wraps her arms around him. He shuts his eyes and holds her to him. "We'll be okay."

He means it; even if the worst happens, that thing he can't stand to think of, even if that happens they'll have to be okay because they have two other children that need them.

She nods, drawing quiet strength from him and then stepping back, looking better. "Good?"

"No," she says, then smiles humorlessly.

"You want food?" Cam asks.

Vala shakes her head. "No, I just want... I want to go back to work finding her."

Cam doesn't have any problem with that. He'll make her eat later, but right now he agrees.

They dress quickly enough and head to the lab. Halfway there Cam reaches down and takes Vala's hand.

Sam's smiling when they walk into the lab. She's not just smiling, she's beaming - Cam knows her well enough to know she wouldn't give them false hope.

"We have a lead," she says. "It's a pretty good one."

"What's going on?" Cam says.

"P45-3V2 sent back some good news." Sam's pulling out the photographs.

Vala grabs them from her and one of her hands covers her mouth. "Oh, god, it's my baby... She's-"

"Okay." Cam finishes, pulling her against his side, arm wrapped around her shoulders. "Why didn't you call us right away?"

"It literally just came in. I set it down to go call you when you walked in." Sam's grinning so big with the news. "He hasn't left that planet yet either."

"When do we leave?" Vala's already heading for her gear when Cam tightens his grasp.

"We... Vala..."

"You're not leaving me behind." She's stubborn, stern and hurt that he would suggest or even hint at that. "This is why we sent the children away in the first place. Because we were both going."

God he wants her with him for this. "I know, but… We have two other children to think of, honey. They need us or at least one of us."

"And I lost her so you're the one who gets to go get her back? I can't be tr-"

"Do not say it." Cam looks around, everyone is staring at them. He tugs her to the corner of the room. "I trust you with everything I have. I love you. But this rescue mission is extremely dangerous and risky. Not only dealing with the Ori, but now the Lucian Alliance as well. If something goes horribly wrong..." He takes in a breath, he doesn't want to think about not coming home to his wife, his two, hopefully three, kids. But if this is it for him, he doesn't want his kids left parentless. "They need you."

"They need you too."

"Not as much as they need you." It pains him to say it. But it's true, she's their rock. Their anchor. "Adria-"

"She's yours too." He can't use that to win this argument.

"If both of us are gone, unable to protect her, they know what she is. Who she is..." Cam kisses her forehead. She hot with anger and the skin is taut beneath his lips. "Plus, you're stronger than I am. You don't _need_ me to survive."

Vala blinks back furious, hurt tears. "I need you," she whispers. She sounds like she's trying to convince him, like she's trying to convince herself.

Cam just shakes his head. "The kids need one of us here. You've been out of the field longer."

The discussion doesn't end there. Vala doesn't give in easily. She argues him but he can feel the give in her voice.

Everyone else has been pointedly pretending that they couldn't hear the exchange taking place. He looks at Sam. "How soon can the ship be ready to leave?"

"The Landry is in orbit and they're restocking the fuel supply now," Sam says. "An hour, tops."

"Good," Cam says. "Last thing we need is to run out of gas."

"You might want to pack a bag," Sam says, a little hesitant.

Vala stiffens. She clearly doesn't like the thought of him being gone overnight. "Come on," he says, reaching for her hand again. "Come with me."

She's silent while they walk.

"It shouldn't take that long," he says, trying to be optimistic. "I bet I'll be back with Lyra before night."

Vala still doesn't say anything. The silence pains him.

Once they're in their quarters, she sits on the couch. Her posture is still tense, shoulders squared like she's about to go into battle.

He sighs. "Vala."

"What." That tight, clipped tone burns at him.

He walks over to her and kneels in front of her. "I don't want to leave like this."

He puts his hands on her knees and she closes her eyes. A tear leaks out and he reaches up to wipe it away. "I want her back, but I don't want you to go."

"I'll be back. I'll bring her back." Cam moves to sit beside her and pulls her into his arm. She cries quietly, and he holds her, rubbing her back. "Call my folks. Have them meet you with the kids. Stay on base with them. Hell, go get the cat, bring him here, too."

Vala laughs a bit at that. "Don't you have to fill out paperwork in triplicate?"

"I won't tell the General," Cam asks, and that makes her laugh too, because he _is_ the General now.

"Come back to me." She's never uttered those words to his face, until now. Losing a daughter is unacceptable, losing a daughter and her husband is beyond that. She's resigned now, to him leaving. But she will not let him leave knowing that he has any excuses for not walking back through that door. "To us."

His lips graze her forehead, her nose, her cheeks, before landing over her lips. "It would take worse than death to keep me from returning to you." They kiss again. Nothing is forgiven yet, by her, but she won't let him completely back in until he's returned to her.

"I'm too hot not to come home to."

"Yeah, Plus I'm jealous. I can't imagine you moving on. My wife with another man. My kids with a new dad..." Even pretending it hurts to think about.

"I'd never-"

"Let's not..." Cam kisses her silent. This time she gives in to his mouth - lips parting and letting him deepen it. The call of his name over the intercoms gives them pause. "Time to go."

Her hands grip his face, pulling him in for one last, desperate kiss. "I love you, Cameron Mitchell."

"You're the love of my life, Vala. I'll be back. Tell the kids I love them too."

She nods and gets up with him. He's not getting out of her sight until he's on that ship. Her hand clasps his tightly the whole walk back to meet Sam and Daniel. Only Sam is suited up, ready to leave.

"We had the same argument last night..." Daniel blushes as it's obvious he's the one staying.

"He's already lost everything once... I thought I should be the one to go." Sam explains their reasoning. Cam just nods and hugs Vala tightly to his chest. "Time to go..."

"See you." Cam whispers against her ear before releasing her and turning to board the Landry. No one says goodbye.

xxxxxxxxx

It's been a while since Cam has been on a ship, longer than he cares to admit.

Sam's still in control. Though since having Aiden she's stuck planetside, the fact is that she's commanded one of these before, and Cam hasn't.

He stands on the bridge, arms crossed. He's wearing BDUs but the looks he gets from the people around him lets him know that it doesn't matter. He's still General Mitchell to most of them. He's fine with that; he's a good leader, he thinks his people respect him, and it's almost a comfort. It makes him feel like he's in control and right now he really needs to feel that way.

He's glad Sam's there, too. It almost feels like they're back on SG-1, back on a mission... only this mission means more. It's probably the most important thing he's set out to do. Saving the world - that's important, yeah. But right now this is what makes the world worth saving, his _family_.

xxxxxxxx

Vala's not sure what to do once she's left alone on base. She stands there trying not to cry, exhausted and sick of tears by now but unable to stop them from falling.

Daniel pulls her into a friendly hug, squeezing her. "Hey, why don't we go get those kids of yours? See how much Aiden has terrified your parents."

Vala laughs shakily. "If I know your son, he's probably convincing Adria to teach him calculus."

Daniel smiles. "Well, he's not quite there yet, but he does have all the colors mastered and he can spell his name."

After stopping to let Walter know how to contact them, Daniel and Vala get into his car. There's a child seat in the back and Vala almost speaks up and says they'll need to get Lyra's, too, until she remembers that Lyra won't be there waiting for them. She tries to put that thought aside. "Are we bringing them back to the base?"

"Yeah, I thought so."

"Would you mind making a stop? At my house..." She thinks of what Cam had said. She has no intention of letting her son and daughter out of her sight, and right now she even wants to see the damn cat. "I'll need to pack a few things."

"Yeah, yeah, of course," Daniel says.

Vala instructs him how to get to the Mitchell's home. The kids are playing in the front yard. Aiden recognizes the car and his face lights up. By the time they pull in the driveway, he and Tyler are both there excited.

Adria's outside too, but she's not exactly celebrating. She sees Vala without Lyra, sees that Cam isn't there. "Where's Daddy?"

Vala picks up Tyler, hugging him and kisses his cheek. He's got dirt smudged on his face and a new scrape on his chin. She fusses over him, licking her thumb and wiping away the dirt while he squirms away. "Your father had to go."

"Is he going to find Lyra?" Adria asks bluntly.

"He's trying," Vala says. "Where are your grandparents at?"

"Grandpa went to the store. Grandma's in there. Adria points to the front door, a vague gesture. "I was watching the babies."

"Not a baby!" Aiden protests, pouting from his spot snuggled up in Daniel's arms. The family resemblance between them is strong, hair the same color, facial structure the same. He's got Sam's eyes, though, and Sam's dimples when he smiles. So far he's shown an aptitude for language, signing before he could speak, and an absolute love of mischief. It's only his darling little face that keeps most adults from wanting to throttle him after being in the room with him for more than 20 minutes. Vala would never say that to Sam or Daniel, but they all know it's true.

Cam jokes that it just means he'll be running SG-1 in about 20 years.

Vala knocks on the door but pushes it aside without waiting. "Mom?"

Wendy walks in from the kitchen. She's wearing a flour dusted apron and has a tired smile on her face. 'Vala, honey, I didn't hear you drive up. I was just making some lunch... oh, hello, Daniel!"

Wendy and Frank have met most of SG-1 a few times by now, at various gatherings Cam and Vala have had.

Daniel puts Aiden down, so he and Tyler can go play some more. "Mrs. Mitchell. I hope he wasn't too much of a handful."

"Oh, he's... certainly precocious," Wendy says, smiling. Adria sits at the kitchen table and Wendy puts a hand on her shoulder. "Like someone else I know."

Adria makes a face and then asks, "Where's Daddy?"

"We know where Lyra is," Vala says. She hesitates, then reaches into her purse and pulls out a folded photograph. She shows it to Adria, who just stares at it. "Your father went to go find her."

Daniel is clearly surprised that Vala would show Adria that, but Vala knows her daughter. Adria's more than just precocious. She's perceptive, and there's no point in hiding it from her completely.

Adria hands it back. She looks sad, and serious. "Can we talk to him? On the phone?"

"No," Vala says.

Wendy sighs and then turns around, back to the oven where a large pot needs stirring. "Well, you'll stay for lunch, won't you? I've got chili here, and some hot dogs for the boys if they don't want to eat this."

Vala glances at Daniel, who shrugs slightly to let her know that it's up to her.

She feels better in this house, with familiar scents and faces, Cam's family, _her_ family, and she isn't ready to leave it just yet. "We'll stay."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Cam's not sure about the drop point but there's nothing else they can do. They suspect that Ventrell is hiding in the hills. They've been monitoring the traffic on and off the planet since he was first spotted and there's no sign that he's left.

"This is a shit plan." Cam mutters as they await the beam in. "A really piss poor idea."

"We've planned the whole trip-"

"I know, I know. Nothing better. Just..." Cam tightens his hold on his gun. He wants to make sure he's ready to fire if he needs to as soon as he's got solid ground beneath him. "Don't tell Vala..."

Sam shakes her head. "She will not be hearing about this from me." The light engulfs them and then they're on the planet.

It's just Cam, Sam and one other airman. A small team to prevent a higher risk of loss. There's too many nooks, places to hide, nowhere to take cover while walking through them. They're sure they have a mark on him.

On Lyra. They've scanned everything and are 98% positive that it's right.

That 2% is what they're afraid of. The part that is going to fuck them over.

"Let's move." Cam takes the lead. He doesn't want Sam facing the danger in front. He knows that Aiden needs his mother too. He'll sacrifice himself before he lets them hurt Carter.

It's a long trek up the side of the hill. The incline's not super steep but it's still noticeable after they've been walking it. The GPS on Cam's shoulder lets a faint beeping sound off and he flips the silencer and pulls it down where he can see it.

"How far?" Sam's lowered her voice, just in case.

He squints at the device and then up at the opening in front of them. "There." He points, checks with the final team member who shows he understands and then they skulk along the out cropping of rocks. His eyes are glued to that cave opening. If he tries to make a run for it, he won't miss it.

When they are five hundred feet away the musical sound of his daughter's voice hits. It's not the happy laugh he remembers. It's a screaming shrill followed by crying. He's about to rush in when Sam's hand grasps his vest. She's got a grip on him. Probably from keeping hold of that slippery eel she calls a child.

"My baby."

"Cam." It's a stern look. She knows how fast his heart is beating. How much he needs to go get her but she can't let him die. Vala would kill her. A double fatality would not improve the situation. "Wait."

"She needs me."

Sam's never heard him so desperate. Never.

He doesn't have that long to wait. Someone walks out - not Ventrell. It's a woman, young with her hair pulled back and dress on. She kneels outside of the cave and Cam realizes that there's some sort of box there. She rifles through it and pulls something out.

She's about to walk back inside the cave when he comes out - Ventrell.

Cam has his gun trained on Ventrell before anyone can move. He holds his breath, finger steady against the trigger, and he's a split second away from taking Ventrell out when the man turns and walks back into the cave.

He curses and steps back, kicking a boulder on the ground in front of him. Sam puts her hand back on his arm, and her glare makes him fall silent. She's right; he doesn't need to give away their position.

Instead, he lets her do her job; lead them in. They make their way forward, slowly and quietly, until they're at the point where there's nothing but open space.

He waits for Sam's signal and they advance to the mouth of the cave. They know that it doesn't go deep, but the rock stops their systems from scanning for heat signals once they're inside so they can't tell the exact positions of Ventrell and his men - or Lyra. Of course, Ventrell wouldn't be dumb enough to hide out any place they could just lock on to Lyra and use the adapted Asgard technology to beam her out.

He takes one side of the cave and the airman takes the other while Sam leads the team. They make it halfway across the main cavern room when the same girl as before sees them. Her eyes widen in shock and she drops the glass in her hand.

The sound startles everyone.

"You idiotic woman-" Ventrell's voice thunders, and he walks out. He sees SG-1 and then takes off, running toward the back of the cave, Cam hot on his heels. He gets held up by two of Ventrell's men, and he manages to fight them off - shooting one, while slamming the other into the wall, adrenaline giving him strength.

Sam and the airman handle the rest of Ventrell's gang while Cam moves deeper into the lair. He hears a crying and takes off at a full speed run, heart thudding in his chest. He follows the sound and makes it into the room to see her in Ventrell's arms, a flash of black hair and wide blue eyes, arms reaching for him, before both figures are engulfed by a set of rings and then gone.

He falls to his knees, arm still outstretched, reaching for his daughter. He hadn't even realized it was there. Cam looks at his empty hands. Everything in him wants to crumble.

"So close... So..." He's muttering to himself. Trying to keep the tears at bay. He can't fall apart in the field. They would refuse his request to come the next time if he did.

"Cam!" Sam and the airman come racing in. She sees the ring base on the floor. "Oh god, we should have seen that..."

"I almost had her, Sam... She was right there."

It's obvious how close he is to a breaking point to her. She's kneeling before him. Her hand grips his fiercely. "We found her once. We can find her again." It's all she can find to comfort him. She can't imagine what he's feeling right now. "Let's go back. I'll call the ship and we can ring on."

Everything is a blur now. Cam pushes his way through the return trip. Most of the people avoid him after hearing the report about what happened on the planet. They don't want to be the ones that send him tipping off the cliff. It's clear that none of them can help. There is only one person that can.

Sam sees him just sitting in the conference room, muttering to himself and she stops her progress and walks in. "We're going to be back shortly."

He just nods. It's all he can muster.

"It's not your fault." She can see the wince. "We _will_ get her back. We will." She squeezes his shoulder and goes back to what she was doing. It's the best she can offer. It's not enough, but it's something. He'll need Vala when they get back. Sam knows that she's the only one who can absolve his guilt. The only one that can tell him it's alright, they will try again.

Sam hopes that it will help. The man she leaves at the table is on the verge of collapsing. Only one person will be able to catch him when he does and pick up the pieces.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Vala's ready when the ship gets back within beaming distance. She knows there's a chance it didn't work but all she can do is hope for the best. Realistic expectations seem beyond her right now; she wants her family back together, all in one place.

They beam into the gateroom and Vala bites back a sob when she sees that Lyra isn't with him. At least he's back, though, and she goes to him. He lets her hug him for a minute and then pushes back. "Have to debrief," he says, almost mumbling, and it's so not like Cam but Vala goes with it.

She sits in the debriefing room and listens to the story; how close they'd come. Sam's in the middle of explaining that because Ventrell's ship was cloaked, they can follow the cloaking device residue but it takes time and equipment that's not on the Landry. Instead, the Lantea - which is more of a scientific exploration vessel - has diverted course and is now on the way. They'll be able to tell where Ventrell has gone after that, but they will undoubtedly be a few steps behind him with the time delay.

Cam interrupts her mid-sentence. "I saw her."

Vala's head jerks around. "What?"

"They didn't ring out before we got to the room. I got there first. I saw her. She saw me."

Her stomach bottoms out and for a moment she feels like she's going to be sick. She's suddenly fiercely glad that she didn't go on the mission, that Cam went instead; she's not sure she could handle watching her daughter be taken away a second time. She's not sure if Cam can handle it either, though. She's never quite seen him with that expression on his face.

They all look at him for a moment, and then Sam just starts talking again. Vala's grateful, and under the table she reaches for Cam's hand. He barely responds, his fingers warm but unmoving in hers while he just stares straight ahead. His expression gives nothing away but she's stared into those eyes enough times to know something's wrong and she doesn't have to guess what.

Two men approach Cam after the briefing, wanting descriptions of Ventrell's men, but Vala intercepts. "I'm sure Samantha and Colonel Everett would be happy to help. Right now, Cameron needs to see his children."

She puts her hands on his arm and guides him out of the room. She thinks that seeing Adria and Tyler will shake him out of this, and for a moment when they walk into the room it does seem like it. He hugs them both and smiles and then she can see the redness in his eyes, see how he's struggling with his breath.

Adria notices, too. She looks at Vala, alarmed. She's never seen her father break down before - and Vala doesn't want this to be the first time. "Take Tyler into your room," she says.

There's no hesitation. She asks Tyler to color with her and he's also noticed something's not quite okay and goes with her without a fuss.

Vala almost makes it to their room before the first choked sob escapes him. She wants more room between the children and them, just in case. She wants to protect them from having to see this and him from having them see it. Her family is strong but there are cracks along the edges and breaking is not an option. Not for her. Not for them.

The door is closed behind them as the second cry leaves him. Her arms are pulling his head to her neck, hugging him tightly, as hard and fast as ever before. He squeezes back - needing to feel something soft, something real, something that's his and he can hold onto.

"You did everyth-"

"We could have been faster... I was so close, Vala. I was right there and they ringed away. I lost her." Cam pushes her away. He can't touch her suddenly. It burns him, the pain in his chest is magnified with the feel of her comfort. He doesn't deserve it. He's failed them all.

If he thinks he can get away from her that easily he's mistaken. "You tried your hardest. Nothing could have been done." She knew they did everything right, she heard all the reports, saw everyone's disappointment. Sometimes things, missions, plans, don't work out. It hurts her too, so much. That they were that close and couldn't bring her back breaks her heart.

"She screamed for me, Vala. She called for her daddy and was reaching her arms out." He can't stop himself from crying any longer. The vision of his daughter begging for him to get her, to save her, to bring her back to her mother. It's burned into him. A permanent memory. "I lost her. I was right there and she was gone. I failed you, baby. I failed. I'm so sorry."

He falls to his knees onto the floor. His head buries itself into his hands and he cries.

"Oh, Cam." She's next to him in a second and even though he tries to shake her off she holds fast. She won't let him deny himself this. She doesn't have words to make it better. She knows how he feels. It's hard to be the strong one. She's not envious that he's been the one to hold himself together for her, for their family, until just now. She wants to break with him. Wants to curl up in a ball next to him and cry. "You didn't fail me. You came back to me."

"I didn't bring back our little girl though..." He turns into her now, no longer able to deny himself the feel of her arms.

"But you will," Vala says, exuding confidence that she doesn't entirely feel. "Because we have to."

He doesn't say anything else after that. He can't even think enough to be embarrassed about falling apart like this in front of her. Every part of him hurts, not a physical pain but an emptiness inside that he's never felt before, never experienced.

Is this what it feels like to lose a child? He doesn't want to think he's lost her, doesn't want that it could be his fault. He doesn't blame Vala for Lyra being taken, because he understands that it wasn't Vala's fault, but he can't apply that same logic to himself. All he can focus on is the fact that he had her right there, he was in the same room with her, and he just wasn't fast enough - wasn't good enough, didn't do what he needed to do.

And now his daughter is somewhere else, and they have to start all over again to find her.

He cries until there's nothing left and Vala's still sitting on the floor with him, holding him. He starts to breathe again, chest burning from the lack of oxygen he's taken in. His head is pounding already and his stomach churns. "I can't..."

His voice breaks again when he starts to talk and she shushes him. She kisses his cheeks, salty tears on her lips, and then grabs a shirt from the floor and starts to wipe them away. "Don't," she says.

"Vala..." He looks at her helplessly, but she just shakes his head again. She realizes that he probably hasn't slept - or if he has, not well. She gets to her feet and with the grip she has on his hand, he has no choice but to follow.

"Bed," she says, laying down beside him once he's there. They're on top of the covers, still fully dressed, and he rests his head on her chest, much the way the children do when they're upset. She starts to run her fingers through his hair, soothing him. She thinks he starts to cry again but these are quiet tears and she knows that there's nothing to do but let them run their course as well.

xxxxxxxx

"Is daddy alright?" Tyler's little face is framed by the door. He's whispering so not to disturb the quiet that's lingering in the room.

Cam had fallen into a fitful sleep not long ago and Vala's not going to risk moving and waking him. "He's just sad, baby."

Tyler creeps in slowly and is followed closely by his big sister. "'Cause of Lyra?" There are only a few inches between them all now and Vala pats the opposite side of the bed. Neither of them hesitates, climbing in and curling up next to her.

"Yeah, Lyra being gone makes your daddy very sad." She reaches around them both, petting each head in turn. Trying to soothe the whole family. "Your mommy too."

"But you'll get her back right, Mom?" Adria looks up to her mother, trusts her words. She wants to hear that they will. Little sisters can be annoying but she loves her. She never wanted her gone, at least not forever gone.

Vala sucks in a shallow breath. She can't think of any other ending. "We're trying. Everything we can." There are never false promises, not to her children. Cam knows. She'll insist that they will until all hope is gone but it's different with him. He understands that there is a chance, an ever growing one, that they'll never hold her again.

"Can I help?" Tyler's head is on her lap now and he looks up into her eyes. "I could help find her. I'm good at finding Waldo."

"You're very good at that." He's so good at making her smile, even the sad one across her face now.

Adria's been thinking about everything, watching and listening. She's not quite sure, can't really place it, but she feels like she could help if they hadn't fixed her when she was little. Maybe she should offer to have them undo whatever they did.

"Maybe I could help... Go with daddy next time."

"Never, darling." She reaches out to her daughter and moves her close. "I will not risk your safety."

"Not even to help get Lyra back?" Adria is trembling. She offered, yes, but it still scares her that she might say yes. That it would be alright to try it. She doesn't want to be that close to the bad people. She fears that they are the same ones used to whisper in her ear when she was little. Before they made her head stop hurting.

"Honey, not one of us is more important then the other. We won't risk harm to you. No matter what." Vala loves her daughter even more for offering.

"Daddy does. He goes out and maybe won't come home." Tyler's the one who points it out.

"Baby, he has to." She looks between her children and sees how grown they are. How smart, how perceptive, and she knows that losing their sister has been just as hard on them. "He has to."

They all stay there together for a few minutes but Tyler starts to get restless and Vala would rather try to let Cam sleep, so she leads the children back into the living room.

It's a couple hours before Cam walks in. He looks tired, a little confused, and still exhausted. Vala, Adria, and Tyler are all sitting on the floor with paper and crayons spread around them.

Vala looks up at Cam. "Tyler wanted to make welcome home cards for Lyra."

"Mine's a truck, Daddy," Tyler says, showing it off.

Cam has to smile. "That looks great, buddy."

His voice is scratchy. Vala reaches out for his hand and tugs Cam to sit down beside her. He sits with his back to the couch, and Vala scoots back against him, turning to press a kiss to his stubbled jaw.

"I drawed a flower on the inside cause Lyra doesn't like trucks but she likes flowers," Tyler says, getting up and moving to sit between his parents.

"Good thinking," Cam says. He looks over at Adria. "Can I see yours?"

Adria hands over what is actually a fairly good drawing of Lyra. Better than Cam could do... at Adria's age, or even now. They've come to realize that Adria just seems abnormally good at whatever she puts her mind to. He smiles proudly. "Looks amazing, sweetheart."

She just nods and goes back to shading it in.

Vala lifts up her own piece of paper. There's no drawing just swirling patterns of colors in the same tones that they'd decorated Lyra's nursery in. There's nothing written on the inside. "You can help me think of something," Vala says, voice soft. She doesn't say it out loud but with her eyes she's asking him if he's okay.

He's not, not really. But neither is she and they won't be until they have Lyra back.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Sam comes by a couple hours later. She's got a bag of food containers. "I thought you guys might just want to stay in."

Vala's grateful. She hadn't been looking forward to braving the mess hall. Sam lingers in the doorway and Vala realizes that she must want to talk, too... but not in front of the kids.

"Adria, set the table for us and put the food out, will you? Your father and I need to talk to Sam."

Adria puts down her crayons and takes the food bag over to to the small table in their quarters. The suite is small, only two bedrooms, a main room, and a bathroom, so the adults are forced to go into the bedroom to get some privacy.

Cam sits on the bed. He still looks awful but Sam doesn't comment on it. "What's going on?" He asks.

"We've been able to track the ship."

Vala perks up and Cam sits a bit straighter on the bed. "You know where she is?" Vala's voice trembles.

Sam shakes her head. "Not precisely." She's trying not to bring them too much hope, in case it turns out to be nothing. "We know the area. The residue from his cloaking device but that's it. Unfortunately it's a pretty highly populated area in that quadrant of space."

"Is there any fast way to narrow it down?" Cam's hopeful. He knows his teams are brilliant. Every resource is working on finding one little girl and he thinks he should feel guilty, but he doesn't. He just wants his baby back.

"We're busy contacting all our allies in the area right now."

Vala knows there's something else. Something Sam doesn't want to tell them. "We don't have many allies there do we?" The expression on Sam's face tells her she's exactly right. "What area?"

"Cabanotox sector."

Vala lights up. "I might have some connections there." She turns to Cam. "I'm going to go with her and see if anyone remembers me... well fondly, I hope."

There's a spark behind her gaze, one Cam hasn't seen since before Lyra was taken. "Go. I'll be okay. The kids and I will eat then go to bed." She leans down to kiss him. "You should eat too, sweetheart."

"I'll grab something on the go." She looks at Sam. "Can you give us a second?" Sam nods and exits.

"Don't worry about me, Vala. I'm alright."

"You sure?" She sits next to him and puts an arm around his shoulder.

He isn't fine, she knows that. He knows that. But there's no choice right now. She indulged him before. Letting him breakdown on her. "No. I'm not, but I have to be okay for you, for the kids."

"I'll be home as soon as i can."

The bed jostles as she rises. "Baby?"

"Yeah?" She turns as she's about to go meet Sam.

"I love you."

After a few waterworks from Tyler when Vala leaves, they get back to dinner. "Thanks for getting everything ready," Cam says, smiling at Adria. "You're being really great, helping your Mom and I out."

Adria doesn't look as happy at the praise as Cam would expect. She just sort of shrugs. "I wish I could help you find her."

She looks up at Cam and for a second, he wonders. He wonders if she _could_ and for just that second, and no more, he thinks about it. But the moment passes and he knows he never could. The SGC wouldn't let him, but even if that weren't an issue, he still wouldn't sacrifice one child for another... not Adria, never Adria. She might be the one that isn't his by blood but she was still his first, the one he fought for.

He stares so long that her forehead scrunches in confusion. "Daddy?"

"You're helping, baby," he says, reaching out and squeezing her hand. He looks at Tyler, too. "You both are."

Tyler already has fries stuffed into his mouth. He nods and chews on his mouthful, ketchup smeared across his bottom lip.

"How?" Adria asks, still not having touched her food. She looks frustrated by her own limitations and Cam sympathizes.

Cam pokes at his macaroni and cheese with his fork, not looking at her while he talks. "You give your mom and I a reason not to lose it."

She seems to understand, though it's not the answer she was hoping for. "When I grow up, can I do what you do?"

That catches him off guard. "What?"

"What you and Mom do. When I grow up, can I do that? Would I be good at it?"

He has to smile. "Sweetheart, you'd be the best."

"What about me?" Tyler's determined not to be left out even around a mouthful of french fries he wants assurance that he could do it too.

Cam ruffles his hair. "You'd be awesome at it too, buddy."

"Daddy, what if we never get her back?" Adria's poking at her food but still not eating anything.

"Honey." He scoots his chair closer to hers and puts on arm around her shoulders. "We can't think like that. We can't allow them to steal her and the hope we have we'll get her back. If we do then..."

She nods and turns into him. It's like she's five again, always wanting to sit on his lap, hug him, cling to him. He didn't realize how much he missed that until now. Cam pulls her into his lap and just hugs her. She's so stoic at times, resists showing any sort of emotions.

Tyler's looking forlorn across the table and Cam opens his arm for him to come over too. He flies off his chair - grabbing a handful of fries before he goes too far - and races over to his father and sister. He clamors up onto the other side of Cam's lap and the three of them just sit hugging for a bit.

"You need to eat, Addy." She snuggles in deeper instead of moving back to her own chair. "Come on, Mom's not here to talk you into it and I don't have then energy. You're already too skinny, little princess."

"Just a little?"

Her eyes are so listless and it breaks his heart some more. "Yeah, just a little. Then bed time."

xxxxxxxxxx

He's sitting on the couch. Staring, staring at nothing, the TV isn't even on. He's just lost in thought waiting for Vala. Except he doesn't notice when she walks in. It scares her at first, how still he is, but she sees the rise and fall of his chest and breathes a relived sigh. The door is locked behind her and she walks over and straddles his lap. He's startled at first but then pulls her into a tight hug, letting her settle against his chest.

"I called everyone I know - knew. Most of them were dead ends. Some of them weren't at first but after hearing my name they refused to help... I wish I wasn't so-"

"Baby, you are who you are, don't wish it away. No matter what, I love you."

She kisses his neck for being the sweetest man she's ever known. For loving her as much as she loves him. "But I did find a few that were willing."

"And?"

"And I think we found her." Vala's on her back suddenly, pressed into the couch and his lips are covering hers. She holds him close, wrapping her legs behind his back and tangling her fingers through his hair. When he releases her mouth she talks again. "Sam's putting a plan in place. You leave tomorrow."

"If I lose her again I don't know if I-"

"Damn you for even thinking something like that, Cameron Mitchell. If you lose her again, we'll still love you just as fiercely as before."

"It hurt so much to watch her just disappear..."

Vala doesn't let him finish the sentence. She kisses him again, just wanting to feel something that doesn't hurt. This... this never hurts. His mouth on hers, so familiar, is just what she needs. She is hopeful right now... and maybe it's misguided but she wants to think that this is going to be okay. She's sure that this high will be met with another low but she'll ride it out in the mean time and make the best of it.

Right now, that means trying to make Cam feel better. She pulls back from the kiss then leans in one more time to brush her lips over his. "Is there any food left?"

Cam nods. "Yeah, Tyler only ate one of his hot dogs. It might already have mustard on it though. He liked playing with the little packets."

"Oh, the advanced palate of a five year old," Vala says, getting off of his lap but taking his hand and giving him little choice but to follow her over to their small dining table. She opens all of the food containers and studies what's left before plucking up a fork and taking a stab at the half eaten macaroni and cheese of Adria's.

"That looks disgusting," Cam says. "It's gotta be at least three hours old."

Vala just smiles. She's hungry, and it's food, and she's had a lot worse in her life time. "Whose plate was this? Adria's? She hardly ate anything."

"Yeah..." Cam says, wincing. "She wasn't feeling up to it."

Vala frowns slightly. "She's not doing too well with this, is she?"

"I don't think so." Cam leans forward, clasping his hands together. "It's weird, what she picks up on sometimes. It's like she almost knows that this is... that it has to do with her."

Vala picks up the mustard smeared hot dog and takes a bite of it next, nodding at Cam's words. "Did she say anything else?"

"Not really," Cam says, then remembers another part of the conversation that makes him smile.

"What?" Vala asks.

"Oh, nothing much. She just... she said she wants to do what we do when she grows up." Cam sounds more than a little proud. "She'd run 'em ragged, too, I bet."

"Without a doubt," Vala agrees. "Though..."

She sighs. Part of her is staunchly against Adria having anything to do with the SGC. There's no telling what they would want to do with her if they really got hold of her, with or without her consent.

Vala cleans up most of the leftovers while Cam gets up to tidy up the kitchen. "Ready for bed?"

She yawns after swallowing the last of her water. "I'm not sure I can sleep..." She's revved up with anticipation, worry, and her nerves feel like they've been fried over and over.

"Just lay with me?" Cam offers his hand and she takes it, happy to just be held even if she's just a bit restless still. Her adrenaline is pumping from talking to so many old contacts and the possibility of finding her baby. "I'm still exhausted."

She knows he hates admitting any weakness, even to her, so he must be terribly run down. She starts to disrobe as soon as the door shuts behind them and his hands stop her. He turns her back to him and then tugs at her shirt.

"I look like I needed help?" She smiles back over her shoulder at him.

"Mmhmm." Is all he replies with as he unclips her bra and she lets it fall down her arms onto the floor. His hands are flat on her back now, touching, rubbing, thumbs pressing into the tight muscles. She moans at him and he starts to feel a little less of the immediacy for sleep. "You're so tight, honey."

"Usually you say that at a different stage..." The soft chuckle makes her relax even more. Just adding a tiny bit of joy to his day makes hers better. He keeps massaging her back and it's working - making her sleepy. "Don't stop..." He hits a particularly tight knot and she winces. All he does is back off the pressure and slowly increase the motion until it's all worked free.

She's not sure how long they stand there like that but all too soon she's being directed to the bed. Her eyes are drooping and her breathing is deep and even.

"Now are you sleepy?" She just nods and lies down. He removes her pants and then quickly takes care of his own attire.

The bed dips behind her and she opens her eyes, she must have drifted off, just a little, and when he climbed in it woke her again. He's naked as well, the heat of her skin against his is one of the things that grounds him. The kids are old enough to know to knock now, especially on base when they often use their room for private discussions.

He gathers her close and everything feels better. Everything.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Cam gets up the next morning and prepares to head out again.

He hugs the kids goodbye, kisses Vala in the hallway outside of the gateroom, and then he's standing on a ship again, just like days before.

He has a sense of determination about him this time; he's not going to come back without his daughter. There won't be any retreating and regrouping. He refuses to set foot back on earth without being able to put his family back together when he does so.

Vala knows. She hadn't looked happy when he'd told her, but she'd understood. She'd stepped in close and kissed his mouth and told him to hurry back to her.

That's the thought that he holds close to him while he sits in the mess of the ship. His eyes are locked on the blur of stars outside of one of the viewports as they move through space.

He doesn't even realize when Daniel sits down in front of him. Sam and Daniel are both on this flight; Daniel's the liaison between the SGC and the people of this world, and they hadn't wanted to deal with anyone else. Cam feels a tinge of guilt for making them leave Aiden without a parent but he's with Vala, Adria, and Tyler.

"Jackson," Cam says, acknowledging him once Daniel sits down.

Daniel gives him a crooked smile. "How you doing?"

"How do you think?" Cam responds, not rudely, just lacking in emotion.

"Okay, fair enough." Daniel sits there and they let the silence take over. Cam and Daniel get along fine, and their families are close, but that's more because of the bonds between Sam and Cam, as friends that go back as far as naval academy, and between Daniel and Vala. Those particular bonds are probably why Cam and Daniel will never be the closest of friends. Despite it being years in the past, there's part of Cam that will always remember that Daniel is the one Vala wanted first.

In a few darker moments he's even imagined what Adria's life would be if it had been Daniel that had adopted her, but he reminds himself that it didn't happen like that; at that point, Daniel hadn't had any interest in being a father, and clearly at some point he'd realized that Vala wasn't the woman he was most suited to spend his life with.

He believes Vala when Vala tells him that nothing ever happened between herself and Daniel, and that alone is the reason that Cam doesn't mind the closeness between them.

Daniel moves away, preparing to leave, but before he goes says, "We'll get her back."

Cam looks up and actually smiles, appreciating the sentiment and the fact that Daniel is here, right now, helping him. "Thanks."

xxxxxxxxx

"You're sure?" He's almost panicked. Almost.

"Yes, just a few minutes ago I saw them." The man looks startled by the force that Cam's displaying but he's just seen his daughter. He's so close, again, and he can't let her get away. Mentally and physically he doesn't know if he'll survive losing her once more.

He loosens his grip on the man's arm. He didn't mean to hold him so tightly. "Which way?" Before the man is done pointing Cam, Sam and Daniel are racing off.

Daniel was able to work well with the locals, he'd gotten complete immunity for every kind of operation they're planning and even some assistance. They knew where she was and the military of the planet had been slowly filtering Ventrell towards the end of town. He wasn't even aware of it. It was a trap and Cam was praying to every god and goddess that he knew that it worked.

Just because they knew the general direction that he was heading it didn't mean they knew exactly how he was getting there. Cam wanted to try to stop him before the end point. Trapping a known criminal wasn't ever a great idea when they had an innocent life with them. He didn't think that Ventrell would blink at ending Lyra's life. He didn't want to tip the scale to killing her to prevent them from getting her back.

"There!" Sam's harsh whisper brings him out of his thoughts. "I saw her."

Cam scans the mass of people. Why the market street? Of course he knew why. More people, easier to disguise themselves. Everything working for Ventrell and against Cam's team.

"Think we can head them off?" Daniel's good at asking the questions that seem to lodge in Cam's throat.

"Possibly. We can try." Sam Looks back and motions for them all to split up. They each take a local and a couple SGC members and circle around.

Cam sees her then. Her mop of dark curls. Her blue eyes. God, he's close to his baby. He doesn't wait long. He needs to be the one to take the shot.

"Everybody down!" The people next to him see the gun and fly to the street. Ventrell makes his mistake. His first fatal one. He flings around to look at who's yelling. Lyra slips to the right and Cam aims more left. His finger is true and his aim is sure and the left part of Odai Ventrell's skull is soaring to the earth. His body crumples right after that and Cam has his daughter in his arms before she can react to what's just happened.

"Daddy?"

"Oh, god, baby girl. I love you." He squeezes her so hard he's afraid he'll choke her. She doesn't seem to mind, she's grasping his neck just as tightly.

Lyra's sobbing, blood staining her cheek and hair, and he needs to get her away from here. Far, far away. He feels like he's going to be sick with relief and joy and the possibilities of what all could have gone wrong just now.

He pushes his way away from the rest and just holds her. There's pressure on his shoulder and when he looks Sam is there. She nods to him and then there's the tingle of the Asgard beam and he and Lyra are back on the ship. There's a medical team waiting but he doesn't want to let her out of his arms and Lyra doesn't seem to want to go. She's still bawling, and his shirt is wet from her tears and snot and he doesn't even give a damn. He kisses the top of her head and holds her even tighter.

"General Mitchell," the doctor says, and Cam just shakes his head.

"I can't," he says.

The doctor looks at him and the nods. "Come with me."

He's led to a small area and given something for Lyra to wear - a scrubs top in the smallest size they have, which will still swallow her tiny little body. He sits in the bathroom of the medical bay and wipes her clean with damp towels, kissing her forehead and talking to her in a calming voice. The minutes alone with her work wonders for both of them and when she's clean he carries her out. This time he sits there with her on his lap while the doctor looks over her and announces her in perfect health.

He's grateful that she's been fed and cared for during the time she was gone but it doesn't make him any less furious that she was taken. He thinks of Ventrell's dead body on the ground and feels a grim satisfaction at having been the one to put him there. He knows he won't have any regrets over this. Now he can tell Vala that he was the one that took down the man that stole their daughter from her.

Lyra starts crying for Vala soon. She whines _Mommy_ over and over. Cam stays in the infirmary because right now the setting doesn't really matter to him, as long as he has his little girl.

"We're going home, baby," Cam says, holding her tight to him. "We'll see your mommy soon."

Sam tips her head around the corner. "We're going to be a bit still. How is she?"

"Her health is perfect, well fed, not dehydrated... Her head though..." He kisses the crown of her head as she whimpers against his chest. She only wants her mother now that she's gotten her father. "How much longer?"

He knew this would be hard. He never expected her to be perfect when he got her back. But this is a broken little girl in his arms and he's scared that he can't fix her. She was full of life, bubbly, happy, humorous before this happened. Now she was begging for her mother.

"An hour or so until we're in range to beam you..."

"Yes. We want to be beamed." Sam nods and comes to sit by him.

She rubs circles on Lyra's back and at first she shies slightly, moving closer into Cam, until she looks over and recognizes Samantha. "Honey?" She only mutters an acknowledgement. "We're going to have you back to your momma really soon. But you've got your dad right here."

"Wanna make sure she's not mad at me..." The sobs had slowed but at now renewed at the thought.

Cam's unsure at her thought process so he shushes her. "Why would momma be mad at you, baby girl?"

"I shouldn't have let the man take me-"

He doesn't even let her finish. "That man was wrong. You tried to get away, honey. Your mom isn't mad at you at all. She's angry at that man that took you."

"You sure, daddy?" She sniffles against him and he holds her fiercely tight against him again.

"Positive." She seems to settle a bit after that. The angst about the situation leaves her, at least for a moment. She's taking comfort from Cam's arms and Sam's still rubbing her back. Soon she's asleep.

Cam won't let her go though. He's not letting her out of his grasp until she's in Vala's. He won't lose her again. No place feels safe yet. Even the ship. It's too soon. He leans back against the wall and Sam gets up to leave.

"I'll let you know when we're within beaming distance..."

"As soon as you know."

Sam smiles and waves and for once leaves him without a huge weight on her shoulder. She's proud, really proud, of the work that they do right then.

xxxxxxxx

Vala's still on babysitting duty with the children when they get word that the ship is nearing orbit, and beaming distance. Vala can't even bring herself to ask but the smile on Walter's face tells her what she needs to know. She starts crying then and there and leaves Walter to care for Adria, Tyler, and Aiden while she breaks out at a full run to the gateroom. She gets there with plenty of time to spare which leaves her pacing while she waits.

The electric sound of the beaming device fills the room and then she sees them; Cam, Daniel, Sam, and Lyra.

Lyra starts to cry loudly and reaches for Vala, who engulfs her in a hug, crying and kissing her and then finding Cam with her eyes. He walks over to them wordlessly and wraps his arms around them both. Vala kisses him too, on the mouth, grateful and so happy she doesn't know what to do. "You found her. You brought her back."

Cam's eyes are damp, too. He blinks rapidly, trying not to let his emotions get the better of him. Not here. "She's all right. No one hurt her. She's just fine."

"Mommy!" Lyra clings to Vala with both arms flung around her mother's neck, tiny body trying to burrow in close. "Mommy I was scared!"

"I know, baby, but you were such a brave girl." Vala showers her with praise and affection. "Do you want to go see your brother and sister? Can we?"

Vala looks to Cam, who nods.

"They checked her over on the ship. We probably can't leave base yet-" He glances at Sam, who reluctantly confirms it, "but let's go see the other kids."

"We'll come along and get our boy, so you can have some family time," Daniel says, reaching out and squeezing Vala's shoulder.

Vala carries Lyra back, talking to her in a low voice. Just the sound of her mother seems to calm Lyra and she's barely crying by the time they make it back to their quarters, though the waterworks start up again once Adria rushes over. Tyler stands back a little, but when Vala knees with Lyra still on her lap he comes forward and holds his arms out. Lyra toddles off of Vala's lap and into her brother's hug. Vala gets to her feet and reaches for Cam's hand to grasp it, then turns into him, shoulders shaking with the force of her emotion. Adria hugs both of her younger siblings.

"We're a family again." Vala can't even believe it. It feels like so long that she was missing and the relief of having her back makes her weak kneed and light headed.

Cam feels her about to topple over and collects her tighter to him. "A complete family." He's pulling her back to the couch now and then calling all of the children to pile on. "I never want to know those feelings again." He kisses her temple as Adria, Tyler and Lyra all clamor onto their laps.

"Kids, what should we have for dinner?" Vala's hungry for the first time in ages.

"I think we should have cake." Adria says after a brief time thinking.

"Cake, cake, caaaaaake!" Lyra and Tyler both readily agree.

Vala's grinning so much she's sure her face will hurt for weeks from it. "How about hamburgers and then cake?" Those are a favorite of Lyra's.

Cam joins in. "Oh that sounds so good." His stomach rumbles in agreement and all the children giggle. "My stomach seems to agree. Hamburgers it is!"

His wife kisses his ear and then whispers for him to go to the commissary and bring the meal back. He's reluctant at first but he knows she's leery taking Lyra out and about just yet and he got a lot of time with her on the ride back. He also thinks that she needs time to be only with her family before she's brought back into public. Her confidence around others is probably severely shaken.

"Any other requests before dear old dad goes on a dinner gathering mission?" The group all contemplates and some random extras are suggested. "I'll do what I can. Back in a bit. Take care of your mother for me when I'm gone."

"I'll take care of her, daddy." Tyler has climbed up and hugs Vala's neck. He kisses all four of them before heading out to get food. He'll bring back a lot. Everyone is probably hungrier than normal now that Lyra's back and safe with them.

xxxxxxxxx

Though she eats half a hamburger and some of the tater tots requested by Tyler, Lyra won't move from Vala's lap while they eat. She starts to cry when Vala gets up to go to the restroom, though she does take well to Cam comforting her. Tyler keeps giving her strange looks and Cam knows that all of them are still processing what happened.

Vala finds Lyra's favorite DVD and puts it in. She barely pays attention to the screen though, snuggling on Vala's lap and constantly looking over to make sure that Cam is right there, too. Tyler is on Cam's lap until he gets bored and grabs a couple of his toys to sit on the floor and play. Adria sits on the other side of Vala, reaching out and petting her sister's hair.

Tyler stops playing halfway through the movie and walks over to Lyra. "Where did you go?"

Lyra looks at him and shrugs, then turns and hides her face in Vala's chest. Vala hugs her and kisses the top of her head.

Tyler looks at Cam helplessly. "She went somewhere that bad people were," Cam tries to explain. "But we got her back now."

Though he doesn't really seem to understand, Tyler still nods and goes back to playing. Vala realizes that Lyra is crying again and sighs. She meets Cam's gaze and he knows they'll have things to talk about later, when the children are asleep. They might need help to handle this. Lyra's young, and chances are she'll bounce back just fine, but... Cam doesn't want to take that risk that she won't.

Lyra falls asleep on Vala's lap, and Cam can tell Tyler won't be soon after her. "Bedtime, kids," he says, looking over at Adria. "You can stay up and read if you want to, but you still need to get in bed."

Adria just nods and heads into the children's room. She emerges with pajamas and heads for the bathroom, old enough that she doesn't need any more help or instruction. Cam helps Tyler into his pajamas and leaves Vala curled up with Lyra, just looking down at her daughter.

Once Adria and Tyler are in the bedroom, Cam walks back out holding pajamas for Lyra. She's still in the shirt that they'd given her on the ship and Cam's surprised neither of them bothered to change her out of it before that. She wakes once they shift her and cries out, staring wide-eyed at Cam and Vala. "Mommy," she says, scrambling toward Vala, wearing nothing but her diaper. That much Vala had done, changing her out of the cloth thing that Ventrell's people had kept her in.

Cam and Vala still haven't had a chance to talk without the receptive ears of children around. He's sure she has questions and he'll answer all of them in as much detail as she wants, but not in front of Lyra.

"Do you want to sleep in your bed, or with us tonight?" Vala asks.

"You," Lyra answers, turning around to look at Cam. "Wanna sleep in the big bed. I can?"

"Of course you can, sweetheart," Cam says. He picks her up so Vala can have a chance to get ready. While she's in the bathroom he takes Lyra into the bedroom and gets under the covers, her tiny body tucked under his. "You okay, pumpkin? Didn't anyone hurt you?"

The doctors had looked her over but this is the first time Cam has actually asked. "I'm glad I'm home, Daddy," she says, yawning hugely afterward. "The lady was nice to me but the man was mean and he pushed me and yelled at me for touching his stuff. He said you and Mommy wouldn't ever find me."

Cam sees red and if Ventrell were right in front of him, he'd kill him again, more slowly this time.

Vala steps out of the bathroom wearing one of Cam's t-shirts as a night shirt. She turns the light off on her way and then gets into bed on the other side of Lyra. The little girl goes to sleep quickly, her breathing steady and even between them, but Cam and Vala are up later.

Cam reaches over Lyra to Vala. It's pitch black in the bedroom, but his hand lands on her hand and he rubs upward. She reaches a hand up to cover his and squeezes it. "Okay?" He asks.

"No," she whispers, and he leans forward until his lips press against her forehead. She tilts her head up and his mouth lands on hers, a soft kiss. "But I will be."

"We both will be," Cam says. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she whispers, and their foreheads rest against each other as they embrace around Lyra.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The sound of whimpering wakes them both up in the middle of the night. Vala flips on the light and sits up. Lyra's still sleeping so they gently shake her awake.

"Mommy!" She looks around frantically as if she's still not seeing them. "Where is you?"

"Shhh, baby girl, Lyra, I'm right here." Vala's hand touch her back and she calms and actually looks at her instead of looking through her. Cam moves closer and they use themselves to enclose her. "Daddy and I are right here. You're home. It's alright now."

"'Kay..." She yawns and climbs up onto Vala's lap. Her heart is beating rapidly and her breathing is still erratic. "I dreamed you were not here and I was back with the bad man."

Tears gather in Vala's eyes and she attempts to hold them back. Her poor, dear, little girl.

Cam's voice is calm and sure. "Baby, the bad man will never get you again." He strokes her hair and moves as close to his wife as possible, resting his head on her shoulder so Lyra and look up at him from her position against Vala's breasts.

"Daddy killed the bad man? He's dead?"

He's happy she seems to have blocked it mostly. If she's unsure on whether Ventrell is dead she must not have seen the way half of his head flew across the city street.

"He's dead. He can't ever hurt you again." He kisses her head and rubs a bit harder on her back. He knows what it's like to crave a little more pressure just to know for sure that something's real. "Daddy made sure of it."

"Thank you, daddy. You're the best daddy." She seems to be settling back into sleep. Her eyes are drooping and her breathing is getting slower and even. "Best mommy, too..." After her words leave her mouth she's back to sleep. She didn't want her mother to feel left out before she fell all the way to sleep apparently.

They just sit and watch her for a bit before Vala gently lowers her back down to the spot she was occupying before. "You killed him?"

It's quiet for a minute and she watches Cam's face. The rainbow of emotion that crosses it makes her wish there wasn't a baby in the middle so she could comfort him right now too.

"Yes." Cam looks down at Lyra, as if he's judging how deep of sleep she's in. He moves to get out of bed and she remains undisturbed. "Lets talk about it in the bathroom. I don't want any of it filtering into little ears, even sleeping ones."

Vala slowly leaves her and follows him in. He shuts the door most of the way behind her and then sits on the toilet, seat down. He opens his arms to her and she straddles him, her breasts press against his chest and her head lays on his shoulder. His arms wrap around her and just squeeze. When both of them get the comfort they need from that hug she sits back and cups his face. Her lips brush his and they kiss softly.

"Tell me." The anguish that crosses his eyes makes her stomach clench. "Please."

"We were able to corner him, he didn't know, the teams worked well pushing him towards the end point without him realizing that's what they were doing. They blended, looked just like regular town constables. After what seemed like forever I had him in sights. He had her tucked so closely to him. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't lose her again, Vala." She kisses him again and he finds that it brings him back to now. The fact that their daughter is sleeping in the room right next to them. That they'd be going back in there shortly and sleeping close to her. "I screamed his name. My gun was ready. Finger on the trigger. She was on his right so I aimed a little left. When he swung around she moved slightly more and so did I. I didn't hesitate this time. I pulled the trigger." He takes a minute, letting it all sink in. "The left half of his skull was blown across the street. I ran and pulled her into my arms and then Sam had us beamed onto the ship."

"You did good, Cameron." She's stroking his cheeks now, his forehead, rubbing out all the worry lines. "I'm so proud to call you mine. Most men wouldn't have been able to pull that trigger. Fear would have taken over. You knew what you had to do and you did it. I love you."

He nods and looks at her, unable to take his eyes off of her, like he's searching for something - approval, maybe. She gives it to him in spades. He's killed plenty of people before but in the heat of a battle - never caught someone off guard at that close range and just taken them out. He's killed out of duty before but never love, or hate, or anything nearing this emotion that he feels. Vala's worth it; their family is worth it. "I love you, too."

He won't lose sleep over Ventrell. He won't ever wake up and regret what he's done, no matter how long he lives. That's a certainty for Cam.

Vala smiles at him, feeling peaceful for the first time since this started. Now that she's had a bit of sleep, given her body a chance for some real rest, even just a few hours has made her feel better than the previous nights of tossing and turning. Now gotten used to the idea that Lyra is back... she smiles and there's nothing wanting in it.

Cam reaches up and pushes her hair back from her face and his eyes drop to her mouth. She kisses him again, more slowly but deeper, mouth slanting over his and opening. Cam responds instinctively, arms going back around her, hands flat against her back and pulling her in ever closer against him.

Other parts of his body are running on instinct, too.

It's not exactly the most ideal of locations for sex but neither of them care. When Vala feels him harden where she's straddling him, feels that change so intimately, a surge of overwhelming need shoots through her body, making her cunt wet and her kiss turn needier, demanding something from him. Cam feels the shift in atmosphere and can't think of anything he wants more than to fuck his wife, right now, to remind them both of something less painful than what they'd felt last time they'd done this. It's almost like he wants to wipe that memory away.

"You sure?" He asks, just in case he's reading signals wrong. Married close to ten years and he's still a gentleman, even when they're about to have sex in a bathroom on base.

She leans forward and brushes his lips over his ear, then tugging on it with her teeth. Cam's breath starts to come harder and faster. "Yes," she whispers, rocking forward on him. His fingers clench in the material of the t-shirt that she's wearing and he stiffens even more at the delicious pressure and friction that she's providing him.

She reaches between them and fumbles in his shorts for his cock. She's wearing panties but they're easy enough to push to the side and she gasps when the head of his dick rubs firmly over her clit and does it a couple more times just for her own pleasure.

"Yeah," he grunts, very quietly so they won't wake up Lyra, just one wall away. Vala repositions him and then slides down onto him, gasping. He's not wearing a shirt but she is so he can feel the fabric against him. She lowers her face to his shoulder and bites down gently, just sitting there with her body engulfing him, surrounding him in tight wet warmth. They stay that way for long moments, drawing out the connection, before she plants her feet on the ground and starts to move again.

He's glad base fixtures are sturdy because once they start it gets more and more energetic, Cam's ass lifting off the closed seat with every thrust into her while she slams down against him. They move more frantically than they have in a while, like they both just need it so fucking much, and when he reaches down to rub her clit she reacts like she's been shocked, entire body bucking and jerking. She comes almost right away, clenching and spasming around him, and Cam tries to still throughout it to let Vala enjoy her orgasm but he can't, he just can't. He has to keep going, working his way there. He's filled with energy he can't expend in the position that they're in now; he wants to take her to a bed, lay her out for him and thrust until they're both dripping sweat and exhausted, to holler and shout and call out each others names, but they can't; they need to be quiet, to not wake the kids by making too much noise; it means that drive to motion has to be channeled into something else. It makes the sex electric and intense and Cam knows when he comes it's going to blow his mind.

Vala redoubles her efforts to make this amazing for him, sensing how close he is to coming. She's still coasting on the aftershocks of her own orgasm while she grinds down onto him. He puts his hands on the backs of her thighs and feels the muscles work, then moves up, cupping her ass still clad in panties, and up still more until he gets to the shirt she's wearing. .

She makes a desperate noise and he yanks her shirt up and over her head. He bends his head and she arches up and he latches onto a nipple, sucking harder than he normally would. It doesn't take much longer before he's muffling a groan with his face pressed between her breasts and coming hard inside of her, filling her with spurt after spurt of hot thick come. Vala whines when she feels it flooding inside of her, reaching down quickly and playing with her own clit, bringing herself to a second orgasm while the last of his come is still trickling out of his dick deep in her.

She slumps forward against him, feeling the dampness of sweat on his skin. He smells good; strong and masculine, delicious. She kisses his shoulder, his neck, content with what she can reach without moving her head.

They stay like that until he's softened inside of her and the position becomes uncomfortable to hold. He draws in a sharp breath when she moves off of him, friction on his overly sensitized cock, and she grins down at him. She stands there and he has to look up to meet her gaze. Her hair is a total mess, mouth swollen, a flush down her chest... she's the most gorgeous thing and she's his and they have a life together, a family together, and sometimes that still blows him away.

He lets her tug him up and they stumble backward. She giggles and bites her bottom lip and he reaches down and laces their fingers together, holding each of her hands in his and then leans down to kiss her, sweet and just past chaste, like a teenager after a date. She pulls her hands free of his and wraps them around his neck and they stand there kissing for long minutes, the oddest afterglow they've ever indulged in.

"Do you need to shower?" He whispers against her lips. He can't stop kissing her. It's like it has been forever since they kissed like this. Happy, carefree, in love. He doesn't let her reply for a few minutes - mouth covering hers, lips and tongue preventing her from speaking.

When she pulls back, breathless, licking her lips, she just smiles. It feels so good to be like this again. She finds she even appreciates it more.

"I smell like sex." She takes a big whiff of the air around her. It's heady and musky and wonderful.

Cam makes a play of leaning in and smelling her. The scent makes him moan. "You do. It's a good scent on you, baby."

"Check on Lyra while I start the shower?" She kisses his cheek before turning to take her shower. She can't stop touching him. The way he's acting she knows he's feeling it too.

xxxxxxxxx

The morning comes far too soon. Both Adria and Tyler are standing at the foot of their bed when Cam opens his eyes. Waiting for permission to join them. He gives it without hesitation.

"You two sleep alright?" He lets them slide between him and Lyra but makes sure that Lyra can still cling to Vala. She seems to need her and Cam will not deny her anything that she needs right now.

Tyler yawns as he snuggles in. "Yeah, real good." Adria nods in agreement.

"Do we get to go home now?" Adria's often bored on base and Cam wants to get her home to her room and her things and her privacy. Even though she's still young he understands wanting to get away from her little brother and even her parents.

Unfortunately they won't be leaving yet. "We can't yet, little princess. We need to monitor Lyra and after what's happened we need to check out everything. Make sure that there isn't a threat for anyone."

"How long?" It's early and she's cranky.

Cam just strokes her head and coaxes her back to sleep. "Not long, honey, not long."

He stays there for a bit watching all of his family. But soon his stomach protests and he slips out of bed, carefully and quietly. He'll go gather breakfast and have it ready for when they wake up. He's about to slip out of the room when Lyra's sweet voice stops him.

"Daddy, where going?"

"I'm going to get some breakfast, baby girl. Want anything special?" He's whispering but loud enough for her to understand.

"Oranges juice and pancakes." She gives him a grin that warms his heart.

"Got it. Be back in a little bit. If you need anything don't be afraid to wake your mother." She nods and closes her eyes to try to catch more sleep.

By the time everyone wakes up, Cam has the table full of pancakes, bacon, eggs, and toast along with a full pitcher of orange juice and one of milk, and a stack of cups. He'd commandeered an airman to help him bring back the small feast but it's worth it to keep from having to take Lyra out just yet, and he just doesn't like Adria wandering around. They are rarely at the base now, only on the rare occasion that Cam or Vala has to go off world, but Adria's old enough that if she should decide to explore on her own it could open up a lot of questions they just don't want to deal with.

It's also worth the way their faces light up when they all filter out of the bedroom, Adria first, followed by a sleepy Tyler still rubbing his eyes, and Vala carrying Lyra out.

"What, no breakfast in bed?" She teases.

Cam walks over to kiss her good morning, and then gives Lyra a kiss on the forehead. She holds her arms out to him, wanting to be carried by Daddy, this time. "Oh, good, you changed her."

They've been pretty successful potty training and he's sure they'll get back on track with that soon - now that they can. Now that she's here. He grins thinking about it.

Tyler's already digging into the bacon, stuffing a piece into his mouth. "Boy, you're gonna eat us out of house and home one day, aren't you?"

Tyler makes a face. "Daddy, I won't eat the house. It doesn't taste good."

"Ugh, it's just a saying, dummy," Adria says to him, reaching over to steal some bacon from his plate. Tyler reaches for it back and whines when she bites down on it instead.

"Addy, be nice," Cam says, an automatic response that by now really doesn't even phase Adria.

"Daddy gots me pancakes," Lyra tells Vala. "Special."

"Of course he did," Vala says, smiling at Cam. "Because Daddy's a sucker for a pretty face."

"Mommy and Daddy stayed up past bedtime last night," Tyler says around a mouth full of pancake that he's poured an overly generous amount of syrup on. "I heard them. Then they took a bath."

Cam's eyes go wide and he stills. "Uhh..."

He looks at Vala who seems to be similarly surprised though covers better. "Daddy and I had grown up things to talk about," she says.

She cuts up a pancake for Lyra and then slides the plate across the table so Lyra can eat, still seated on Cam's lap. Their dining table here still only has four chairs, since it hasn't been too long since they retired the high chair for Lyra. Cam wouldn't be eager to let go of Lyra even if there were a place for her.

She gets syrup from her pancakes everywhere. "Someone else is gonna need a bath," Cam says, trying his best to wipe at her hands with a damp napkin and accomplishing nothing, really. "And I should probably take her to the infirmary later. I'm sure they'll come calling soon enough."

Cam also knows that there'll be paperwork to do, and a briefing - something he's not looking forward to. He's grateful for whoever (Sam, most likely) has stepped up and taken over command of the base while he's been gone. He trusts all of his people - if he didn't, they wouldn't be there - but there still aren't many of them that he wouldn't think twice about letting run everything.

"Adria, could you watch your brother while we take Lyra to get checked out by Dr. Lam?" Vala asks.

"Mom!" Adria groans. "When are we going _home_? Roger hates it here."

Cam and Vala both look over at the cat, who is sleeping peacefully on the couch. "Yeah, dear, he seems to not be enjoying himself at all," Vala says dryly. "Downright miserable."

"Well, he is." Adria crosses her arms over her chest and sulks.

"The sooner we get Lyra cleared, the sooner we can go home," Cam points out. "So will you watch him?"

"Yeah, I guess." Adria glares at Tyler as if it's his fault he's too young to mind himself. "Fine."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

She clings to Cam in the doctor's office. It's unexpected for him but he likes it. Vala stands close by and strokes her hair and his shoulders.

"What do you think?" Vala's voice is strong, but waivers with worry towards the end.

Carolyn smiles and pats Lyra's knee. "She's healthy. A little thin, but all of your children are like twigs..." Dr. Lam puts her stethoscope away and turns back around. "Vala can I..." She motions to the back room and Vala nods and follows her in there. "How's she doing mentally."

Vala understands why she didn't want to talk about it around Lyra. "She's scared, clingy but considering everything she seems fairly stable."

"Do you want me to recommend an Air Force psychologist? It might help."

Vala looks over her shoulder, through the window out at Cam and Lyra. He's smiling and entertaining her with some sort of hand game. They haven't had time to talk about it. They spent their alone time with other things... She grins at the memory of last night. "It's a good idea. I'll take the name. I don't know if we'll use it, but it's good to have. I'll have to discuss this with Cameron. We haven't had a chance yet. I know that he'll want whatever is best for that baby though."

Carolyn digs through her files and pulls out a business card. "Dr. Melinda Grey. She's great with children. Does a lot with the kids of men and women that don't come home..."

"Thanks." Vala gives her an impromptu hug. "Is she cleared to go home?"

"I can't see any reason to hold her here." She walks with Vala back out to Cam and Lyra. "You might consider staying a couple more nights though. They are doing surveillance on your place and setting up some outdoor security for you."

Cam stands up and Lyra snuggles into his neck. She's been walking alone long enough but she doesn't want to lose contact with her mom or dad. "We'll stick around another day. The kids and Roger can handle that."

"Roger is in such dire straights here, honey." Vala grins as they joke about their oldest daughter's creative reasoning.

"The cat will have to suffer through." Cam puts a hand on the small of her back as they head back to their room.

Lyra keeps her head down the entire walk back, more quiet than she'd been in the infirmary. Halfway there she says, "Daddy, I sick?"

"No, sweetie, you're not sick," Cam says, shifting her in his arms so she's forced to lean back and he can look her in the eye. "You are perfectly fine."

She looks over at Vala for confirmation. "Of course you're not sick, darling."

They stop walking and Vala reaches up and cups the back of her head, keeping that point of contact until Lyra nods. "Kay."

She perks up even more once they're back in the base quarters. Adria is predictably unhappy with the news that they'll remain another day, but Cam thinks it's worth it for the security measures being taken.

As much as he doesn't want to leave them, Cam knows that he should start becoming more involved in the process again. "I've gotta go schedule some sort of debriefing and talk to Carter."

Vala pouts but nods, knowing how necessary it really is. "Hurry back."

He's almost out the door when he hears Lyra start to wail. He turns back around quickly. "Hey, hey, what's wrong, pumpkin?"

She flings herself at his leg, clinging to it. "Daddy don't go!"

Vala sighs, thinking that they might need that doctor Lam recommended after all.

Cam kneels and says to Lyra, "Your mom and your brother and your sister will all be right here."

"And Roger," Adria adds. "You can pet him. He's good at making things better when you get scared."

Cam smiles to hear Adria admit that. Vala kneels down too, pulling Lyra into her arms. "Why don't we sit on the couch and watch some cartoons? That singing rodent one that you enjoy so much?"

Lyra sniffles, and Cam knows that he has to go whether she cries again or not. Even if the thought of it kind of makes _him_ want to cry. "I'll be back soon, sweetheart."

xxxxxxx

After finding both her lab and Daniel's empty, Cam goes to his office - and sure enough, Sam is sitting there on the phone. She looks up at him and gives him an apologetic shrug, but Cam just grins and waves it off, taking a seat in the chair opposite the one he's normally in.

He remembers being in this office when he'd just started at the SGC, so many times. Discussing things with Landry - his own position as leader, trying to put a team together. He remembers the day he'd sat here and talked to Landry about Vala for the first time and it makes him smile to remember.

Sometimes, he misses someone else being in charge. He thinks Sam looks awfully good sitting there, but it's only a passing thought because he loves this job, this program, and wouldn't ever voluntarily step away from it completely. He couldn't go back to living an unclassified life now; he's made the compromises he needed for his family, and he likes how things are. It's not like him not being in charge would make his family in any less danger; by and large, Cam has made few enemies, and mostly it's people out for Vala that they need to worry about.

Sam finally hangs up the phone. "Sorry - Washington."

"Say no more," Cam says, rolling his eyes. "So I guess we need to meet for a while?"

Sam grimaces slightly and then nods. "Well, just to run through the basics - we have two people working with Ventrell in custody - don't worry, they're at Delta Base, nowhere near here."

"They singing?"

"Like canaries," Sam says. "It probably helped that Teal'c stayed around to question them."

Cam grins.

"They were after Adria," Sam says. "All they knew was that Vala had a daughter who was a powerful weapon. Somehow it didn't occur to them to see if she had more than one."

"Fuck," Cam says. "Are there more?"

"We don't think so," Sam says. "But... you know the risk it is. That's why I went ahead and had them start putting some security in place at your home."

"Yeah, thanks for that," Cam manages a smile. "You know, suddenly I'm realizing why almost no one here has a family."

"The job makes it hard," Sam admits. "Aiden was... not in my plan. I love him more than I can breathe but when I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified."

"Funny how plans don't work out like you think. I was supposed to be career military, married to the job." It makes Cam laugh now because _nothing_ is more important than his family. "So what kind of paperwork do I have to fill out for shooting Ventrell like I did?"

"Ah... lots," Sam says, getting out of the chair. "In fact, your inbox is pretty scary right now, so you might want to be careful."

"Duly noted," Cam says, steeling himself and taking the seat.

Sam waves goodbye and says, "Good luck."

xxxxxxx

He settles down in his office and opens his email. Carter was right - it's a nightmare. May as well start at the top. Each one is slow going. There are a lot of people to justify what he did to. It doesn't matter that Ventrell had his daughter. It didn't matter that he was making a run for it again. All that mattered was that Cam hadn't followed protocol. You can't just shoot someone in cold blood, no matter how much they deserve it...

He glances at the clock amidst his sea of pleading forgiveness and sees that it's way past the time that he was supposed to be back. Just then the phone on his desk awakens and rings. He knows that his wife must be gifted with some sort of psychic powers because this happens a lot.

"Hey honey." Cam answers.

"Uh..."

"Oh, shit, Jackson. I thought for sure you'd be Vala." Cam laughs. Maybe she's mostly normal after all.

"Uh, nope, just me. Less hair, less talk, less drama, more of a penchant for old... well maybe not... Anyway just calling to see if you guys needed anything. Sam told me you're here for another night."

"I could use someone to do this paper work for me." Cam chuckles.

Daniel also finds that humorous. "You should actually ask your wife about that. She was always good at bullshitting paperwork."

"Oh, I know, believe me, I read those reports. I didn't buy an ounce of what she was selling. But no one else would give a damn so I never bothered to have her correct anything."

"Good old military records. Who needs accuracy?"

He looks at the clock again. "I better go check on them, I was expecting a phone call which means I've been out far too long."

"Cam?"

"Yeah, Daniel?" He finds himself calling him Daniel with more frequency these days.

"Just call."

"Will do, thanks."

xxxxxx

It's another hour before he can wrap up what he's in the middle of and when he gets back it's a to mournful crying which turns to thankful crying when he enters the room.

"Vala?" She's got tears in her eyes as well.

"I didn't want to bother you... I know you have-"

"Honey, our family is the most important." Lyra's running at him and he grabs her tightly into his arms. "Shhh, baby girl."

"Daddy! I was needing you and you was gone and mommy wouldn't find you!" She's crying against his shoulder, nose wiping along his BDUs, tears soaking through.

"It's alright, it's okay, little one." He keeps whispering and rubbing circles on her back as he heads to sit on the couch. "How long?"

"An hour or so..." Vala's distraught herself and moves to sit beside Cam on the couch. "I knew you were busy. I thought I could get her to calm down."

"Baby, it's okay." He doesn't need his wife to break right now too. He kisses Lyra's temple as she's quieting. He puts and arm around Vala and pulls her towards him, into his side. "Next time, don't hesitate. No matter what."

"The other two are down with Sam..." She offers the location of Adria and Tyler. "I didn't want them to see her like this. When I thought it was going to be bad I sent them to her and called her. I'll go get them now."

She gets up to leave and there's a tight grip on her sleeve. Lyra's not letting her go either. "Maybe you should just give Sam a call?" Cam offers.

"Momma's just going to call to get your brother and sister home, I'm not going anywhere, okay?" The death grip loosens and she makes a quick call to Samantha. "See Lyra, I'm right back." She sees her nod against Cam's neck and is glad that she's comforted now.

"You want to sleep in the big bed again tonight?" Cam whispers against her hair.

"Please, daddy?" She's quiet and her throat is clogged with the after affect of the tears.

Vala looks almost as exhausted as Lyra. "You want to go lay down with her?" Cam asks over the top of Lyra's head.

"I'd rather us both not be away from her just yet," Vala says. "I don't want to risk a repeat performance. She'll fall asleep soon enough."

"Not sleepy," Lyra protests, but her voice is barely a mumble and it's clear that her expended energy is being felt now. Cam cradles her in his arms and pulls Vala closer still, kissing her temple.

"Love you," he says, then looks down at Lyra. "Love you both."

"Love you too, Daddy..." Lyra sighs and then her eyes slip shut and she's asleep.

They move her into the bedroom and this time Cam insists that Vala stay with her and nap, too. "I'll get Adria to watch Tyler, park them in front of the TV and come back in here with you."

"Good," she says, and Cam isn't sure if it's because she's afraid Lyra will wake up or just because she wants the company herself, but she doesn't seem to want to be too far away from him, either.

Cam wishes he'd asked Sam to bring them food - luckily she seems to be somewhat of a mind reader, because she has a bag full of wrapped up sandwiches when she shows up.

"I got mac'roni and cheese for Lyra," Tyler says. "It's her favorite and she was crying lots."

Cam reaches down and musses Tyler's hair. "You're a good brother. I'm sure she'll appreciate that a lot. You know what else you can do to be a good big brother? Something your mom and I would both really be grateful for..."

"What?" Tyler asks, interested especially once he hears it would earn him Vala's approval.

"Play quietly in your room tonight. Your mom and your sister are both really tired and they need to sleep for a while."

"Okay," Tyler says, apparently not finding that task too hard.

"Addy, can you-"

"Watch him? Yeah."

"You can watch TV quietly in here, and if he wants to get loud just let him play in your room," Cam says. Adria doesn't look thrilled but she also doesn't put up a fight. Cam reaches out and hugs her. "We'll pack up and go home first thing in the morning."

"Promise?"

"Promise," Cam says. "If you need anything, just come in - don't knock, that might wake her up."

"Okay," Adria says, then adds, "I hope Lyra's okay. She's so little."

"She'll be fine," Cam reassures her. "She's just been through a lot."

He heads into the bedroom, shutting the door quietly. The overhead light is off but they've got a small nightlight plugged in, a concession to the utter darkness of windowless base quarters and the fact that they often had young midnight visitors and too many occasions of stumbling and bruises.

He strips down to just his shorts before getting into bed. Vala's sleeping but lightly, waking easily when he joins her. "She's down pretty good," Cam comments when Lyra doesn't even flinch at the dip in pressure in the bed.

"She cried so hard for so long... I was stupid not to call-"

He strokes her cheek, not letting her blame herself. "We need to get her help?"

"Carolyn gave me a card today. I think it might be a good idea..." Vala looks down at their smallest child. Her heart breaks for her. Even though she's back, she's not completely theirs again yet.

"Let's see how she acts when we get home?" He really has no clue how to handle the situation. No one he knows has ever gone through this, he's never had a similar predicament.

She nods. "Is it selfish of me to miss you?"

He's a little confused by the question. "I'm right here..."

"With a tiny body between us." She turns away, not believing she just admitted to being envious of her two year old. "Forget I said it. It's-"

"I know. I want to hold you too, comfort you too. Comfort myself with your body next to mine. We get a lot of that from each other." He strokes her upper arm and wishes he could spoon her to him right now. "It will all work out again. Don't worry. Soon we'll be able to make love in our bed again. Not be sick with worry over whether one of our children is having horrible nightmares."

"Maybe being home again will help us all."

"I know that it will." He wants to kiss her, needs to. So he slips out of bed and walks to the other side. He leans over her and they kiss. And kiss, hands gripping, tongues dueling, lips crushed to each other. "I love you."

"Love you too." Vala's voice is deeper than normal, filled with emotion and exhaustion.

"Daddy?" A whisper, that's still being perfected as an actual whisper, wafts across the room. "Daddy?"

"Yeah, Tyler?"

"Can you tuck us in? Addy and I are tired." When he sees Cam getting up to tuck them in, he scurries out of the room.

"I'll be back shortly." He kisses her again. Not wanting to lose that moment just yet. When he moves again towards the exit she yawns. "Sleep, baby. Sleep."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Tyler's half asleep by the time Cam gets him tucked in. He looks over at Adria, who usually claims she's too old to need such fussing over, but this time she looks back at him and he can just read it in her eyes - she wants to be tucked in, too. In fact, she looks afraid that he might leave without doing it.

He crosses the room over to her and sits down on the edge of her little twin bed. They've tried to make the kids room as bright as they can; colorful bedding, posters on the wall. It had been Adria's room on base first, for months during her surgeries and when Cam would be offworld, and some of those decorations still remain.

"Is Lyra still crying?" Adria asks. She curls onto her side and hugs her pillow. Cam reaches out and smooths back her curls.

"No, honey, she's asleep," Cam says.

"She must have been really scared." She looks up at him. "I'd be really scared if someone took me away from you and Mom."

"No one's gonna do that." It comes out stronger than he intends, enough to make Adria look at him in surprise. He tries to rush past it. "No one's gonna take any of you."

"How do you know?" Adria asks. "How do you know he won't come back and take her again? Or me or Tyler?"

"Because..." He hesitates, then decides she's old enough to know. "Because I killed the man that took Lyra."

"Oh." Adria says, and then sits up and throws her arms around Cam. "I love you, Daddy. I'm sorry you had to kill someone but I'm glad he's dead."

"Me too," Cam says, hugging her back. "Now, stop worrying about that, and go to sleep. First thing in the morning we're gonna pack up and go back home."

Adria smiles. "Good."

He kisses her on the cheek and then reaches over to turn out the lamp between the two beds, leaving only the nightlight to illuminate the room.

He pauses in the living area to check on Roger and put a little more food down. The lazy cat is curled up on the couch still, but darts across the room the second he hears kitty kibble hit the plastic bowl. Cam scratches him behind the ears and then gets back to his feet and goes to get back in bed with Lyra and Vala.

xxxxxxx

They don't waste time in the morning and the fact that they are leaving the base and returning to their house seems to brighten Lyra's mood. She's a bit less clingy, wanting to walk next to one of them a little instead of being carried all the time.

"Momma?" She's still shaky as she's buckled into her child seat. "I sit on you?"

She wants to let her but Cam gives a no with his head. She knows he's right. It's not safe. "Sorry, baby. It's not a good idea. We need you safe, okay?"

She looks like she might cry when Adria steps in. "I'll sit in the middle, right next to you and you can hold my hand okay?" Lyra seems to take to the idea and reaches out for her sister who's leapt into the SUV and buckled herself up with lightning speed. Addy laces their fingers together and smiles brightly at her. Cam gives her a thumbs up over Vala's shoulder and that makes Adria's grin light up even wider. He sees so much of Vala in her sometimes, like when she's beaming with pride, that it almost hurts. He wishes there was a bit of him in her as well, even though it's impossible. He can't help but crave that sometimes.

"Everyone ready to go home?" Cam claps and Tyler, Lyra and Adria cheer. Even Roger meows from his carrier in the back. "Well, honey, looks like the consensus says we should stay another night. Better unpack-"

"No Dad!" Tyler yells. "We all said lets go home. Silly."

"Oh you did? Well then, let's get a move on." He ushers Vala to her side of the car, being chivalrous for her never takes a back seat, no matter how long they've been together. Plus he wants a moment out of earshot. "She calmed down faster when Addy offered her hand. I think it's a good sign."

"Mmhhhmm." She hugs him. It's just what she needs. His arms tug her close and squeeze hard. The contact is perfect and it makes her feel so much better. "Maybe going home is just what she needs."

"I hope so." With that he opens the door and waits for her to get in. They're ready. Home sounds perfect right now. It always does though.

xxxxxxxx

There's a car in the driveway when Cam and Vala pull in. Cam recognizes it as belonging to Wendy and Frank... and while he hasn't asked his parents to be there, he isn't exactly upset that they are.

Especially not when he realizes that they've gone shopping. The cabinets and fridge are stocked with enough food that Cam and Vala could easily go a week without having to leave the house. He hugs his mom tightly. "You really didn't have to."

"You're my baby... and these are my baby's babies." She says, kissing his cheek. "Of course I had to. I wanted to."

Lyra turns shy around them but they are her grandparents and they've been within two miles of their home her entire life, so it doesn't take her too long to warm back up. She even sits in Frank's lap though she's still quiet and looks around constantly to make sure Cam and Vala haven't gotten too far away.

Adria takes off for her room with Roger on her heels, and Cam can't begrudge her that. He craves alone time of another sort; the kind that doesn't involve being exactly _alone_, but rather, alone with Vala.

He looks over at her and smiles. Any other day and he'd be asking his parents to take Lyra for the night, but that won't happen tonight... none of them want to be _that_ far apart, and Lyra probably wouldn't stand for it anyway. No, they'll make do with what they can get, until she's feeling better.

"Momma, hungry," Lyra announces, looking at Vala expectantly. "Maccycheese?"

Lyra hasn't eaten much since she'd come back, her appetite lacking (most likely due to stress, according to Carolyn) so Vala's pleased to hear that.

"Me too, Momma," Tyler pipes up. "And hot dogs."

"Better go ahead and make Addy some, too," Cam says. "I'll help. That okay, pumpkin? You stay here with Grandpa while we go get you some food?"

Lyra weighs her hunger over her separation anxiety and then nods. Cam's relieved, and realizes that being in her own home is already making a huge difference. He slips into the kitchen after Vala, and true to his word makes himself useful, heating up some hot dogs from the fridge while Vala prepares microwave macaroni and cheese.

Once the food is heating, she walks over to him and straight into his arms. "You're doing a good job with all of this," Cam says.

Vala rests her head on his shoulder and snuggles in. "All of what?"

"Lyra. What she needs right now. She's looking to you to let her know it's okay to feel safe, and you're giving her just what she needs. You're a good mom." He rubs her back and then pulls away just far enough to tip her face up toward his, kissing her softly. "A kid couldn't ask for a better one."

"I'll be sure and not mention that to Wendy." Vala says, smiling and reaching up to run his fingers through his hair, cupping the back of his head and pulling him down for a firmer kiss.

"Think we're lucky enough to get a two person party in our bed tonight?" Cam kisses her neck, slipping his tongue out and licking at the tendon there. "I'm starting to think that you're right..."

"Oh, really? Just now. You should have known that I was right long ago." She tilts her head and gives him more access to the flesh on her neck. "What about this time?"

"I am spoiled. I also don't share you well with others. Even my own children apparently." He chuckles against her neck before pulling back just as the microwave beeps.

Vala doesn't mind that he's spoiled. She enjoys being the one to spoil him. "I promise I'll make it up to you. As soon as Lyra can stay at mom and dads for a few hours."

"I hope that's sooner than later. For her sake more than ours." She nods her agreements and he cuts up the hot dogs for the kids. "I'll go gather the troops."

Tyler comes racing in the kitchen not long after Cam's left the room. "Mommy! I love hot dogs."

"Yes, I know, darling." She sets the helping with the most hot dogs on it by him. "I made a plate special for you." He gives her a wide grin and her heart skips a bit because of it.

"Thanks." He starts stuffing his face. Vala thinks that all the children have her appetite and she's glad that they're financially stable or they'd be eaten out of house and home. But not out of house, since that tastes gross. She loves her little boy.

A little girl comes poking into the room next and it's Lyra venturing in on her own. "Hi, mommy." She climbs into her chair and smiles, just a little, when Vala puts her requested mac and cheese in front of her. "I love cheese and nooda's."

"I know you do, sweet princess." She kisses the top of her head and sets out food for Addy. She's coming in with Cam beside her and it looks like they've been talking. "Dinner's ready, honey." She points to the spot she's put her plate and Adria smiles and says thanks. Vala walks closer to Cam who's gone over to make them plates. "She alright?" She whispers.

"Yeah, just worried about everyone." Cam reaches for her hand and squeezes it. "She's a good kid. We've done a good job with her." Vala nods and looks over at their oldest. She's carrying the conversation with her siblings and doing a grand job making Lyra feel more comfortable, more safe.

"I'm glad they got the wrong one." Her voice is so low, so quiet that Cam's not even sure he heard. He cocks and eyebrow asking and she shrugs. "If one of them... If it had to happen..."

"I understand." He really does. Getting the one without anything to offer. Getting the youngest that won't leave lasting scars. He doesn't want to contemplate the end result if Adria had been taken. He hopes it would have been similar... but she's special and he's not sure if the people that took Lyra knew what they were looking for.

Seeing that Vala's preparing more hot dogs, Wendy walks over. She's fine with that being dinner for the children but she draws the line at the adults eating it. Vala, wisely, doesn't complain; Wendy's cooking is possibly highest on her list of reasons that she's glad Wendy and Frank moved to Colorado.

She sits across the table from Adria. "Are you ready to go back to school tomorrow?"

Adria shrugs. "Sure. I mean, I was way ahead of everyone anyway, maybe this will just have evened the playing field."

Cam has to laugh at her unassuming cockiness; it's not something she's bragging about, she just _knows_ she's smarter than every other kid in her grade... hell, probably everyone in her school. Every time the school year starts anew they ask her if she's changed her mind about skipping ahead, but she has friends in her class that she doesn't want to be split up from, and they've learned ways to keep her from feeling like she's at a dead end - including private tutoring sessions with Sam a couple times a week, free access to the library to learn whatever she wants, and a computer with all the latest gadgets and programs. They've even spoken with her teacher and agreed that while just piling on _more_ work won't achieve much, the teacher is free to find additional harder assignments to try and keep Adria's interest.

"Well, if there's anything you need from us, just let us know," Cam says. "You know your education is more important than anything."

"Especially if I want to work at the mountain," she says.

Wendy and Frank both look surprised and curious, turning to Cam and Vala. "What's this, now?"

"Adria's decided she wants to study deep space radar technology when she grows up," Cam says.

"Yeah," Adria agrees. "I mean, it sounds all boring when you look it up online, but whatever Mom and Dad do must be really cool and dangerous. Especially if - well."

She stops short of mentioning Lyra being kidnapped.

"Some parts aren't so cool," Cam says.

Adria nods, looking sheepish. "I didn't mean like that... but still. If it's that dangerous it must be important, too. And I want to help people."

Cam wants to hug her, except she's still eating and he decides he'll leave her be for now.

"I 'portant," Lyra says. "Bad man said so."

Vala freezes, suddenly looking terrified. "He said that?"

"Uh huh." Lyra has bright yellow cheese smeared over her mouth. She lets her plastic fork clatter to the table and tries to wipe it off with her hand, just making a mess. Vala jerks forward into motion, grabbing a paper towel and dipping it into her glass of water, then using it to wipe Lyra's mouth and hands.

"You're special because you're our little girl and we love you," Vala says, trying not to cry. Cam reaches out and puts a hand on her shoulder, providing a point of contact to help steady her.

"A'so cause I know tings." Lyra lets her mom have her chin to clean her more thoroughly. "Momma too hard."

Vala lightens her touch not even realizing that she's doing it. "What is it that you know?"

"Dunno. That's all bad man saying." Lyra looks back at her dad. "Daddy, you know what I know?" Her mom finally lets go of her chin.

Just when everything was getting back to more of a normal flow... Cam flinches. "I just think he was making things up, baby."

"'Kay." She seems to have a sudden chill run over her and Vala sits on the nearest chair and pulls her into her lap to finish eating. "Daddy made the bad man fall down."

The room is silent, no one knows what to say. Wendy and Frank ask if it's true, did he kill him, with their eyes. Cam gives a quick nod at them.

Lyra peers at everyone wondering what she said. "I wasn't scared anymore when I saw my daddy again. I knew he would save me." She beams up at him and then goes back to eating.

"We all knew he would too, honey." Vala hugs her tighter and lays her cheek on the top of her head. "Your father and I love you very much. We weren't going to let him keep you from us."

"I know." She really seems unconcerned now that she's in her home. Safe. With her family having a normal night.

"Adria and Tyler, you guys done with dinner?" Cam's noticed both of them have stopped eating. They both nod, well Addy does and Tyler stuffs another two pieces of hot dog into his mouth and then agrees. "Go get ready for bed."

Both of them protest.

"You have school tomorrow young lady and Tyler you know you're tired. I can see it from here."

"Okay." The word is in synch and drawn out with protest. They don't argue with their father long.

Wendy and Frank take that as their cue as well. "We'll head out too." Wendy kisses Lyra's cheek, then Vala's. "Call me if you need anything."

"Thanks, mom." Vala gives her a one armed hug, not wanting to lose touch with Lyra. "Thanks for making dinner..." She feels bad that she's leaving before it's eaten.

"Don't worry about that. I'm more than happy to cook for you anytime." Wendy and Frank don't make them get up as they leave. Cam walks them to the door anyway. "Really, son. Call us. Any reason. We are more than happy to take Addy and Tyler for a couple days if you need us to."

Cam hugs them both. "You guys are the best. Thanks, for everything." They just smile and Wendy kisses his cheek. He locks the door behind them and then closes up the rest of the house when he sees them drive away.

Lyra surprises them both by staying up for another couple of hours. She hasn't napped, so it's almost like she's trying to stay awake on purpose. Cam feels tired - not just physically but emotionally drained still, like some reserve he'd tapped still hasn't managed to recoup the energy just yet.

Finally around ten pm she starts to nod off. After a whispered conversation they decide to try her in her own bed; her room is a converted nursery and closest to Cam and Vala, anyway. Lyra's old enough to know how to get to them if she needs them.

Vala still seems dubious so Cam digs out the baby monitors, something they still use if they leave her alone to play. That satisfies Vala and Cam both enough that they can go into their bedroom with some peace of mind.

Vala isn't sure she's ever seen a more beautiful sight than her own bed. It's been almost a week since she's slept in it, though sleeping is... not exactly what she wants to do right now.

Cam shuts the door but doesn't lock it. If they're interrupted, they're interrupted; he won't have any of the kids being locked out tonight. He's not even sure that there'll be anything to interrupt, not until he catches Vala's eye and she smiles and pulls her shirt over her head.

They undress separately, not wasting any time, and when Vala's almost naked and Cam's fully disrobed she beckons him over to the bed. He cups her cheek and leans in to kiss her, slow and lingering, reveling in the fact that there's no reason to be more quiet than normal.

No more stress, as well; Lyra's back, the family is whole.

Vala's kiss has a little more heat to it, her mouth opening under his. Cam wants this, no doubt about it; she can feel it when she slides a hand down his chest and grasps him through his shorts. He groans and starts to kiss her neck and shoulder, making a pleased noise deep inside his chest.

His hands smooth across the skin of her back, slipping under her panties and cupping her ass. He's pulling her closer and her hands are forced to release him due to lack of space.

"I need to love you." Cam's voice waivers a little and she returns his embrace, leaning her head against his chest and listening to the pitter patter of his heart. The speed's steadily increasing and she's the cause. "Slow and easy tonight?"

She's feeling that too. The quiet rocking of them pressed tightly together. It's exactly what she's craving. He knows her well, is in tune with her and it makes her feel content.

She kisses his chest, nuzzles against him and tugs his boxers down. "I need that too. So much." It's not about sex. It's not about orgasms. It's about them. About being close, about their love for each other. Both of them have to have the connection.

"Top or bottom?"

He's giving her the choice. Letting her take what she needs, pushing his own to the back burner. "Bottom. I want you on me, over me, driving into me..." She moans just thinking about it. His lips are on hers again. Sucking on her lower lip as he walks her backwards to the bed. When her knees knock against the mattress he pulls back just long enough to pull her panties off.

Cam kisses her mouth lightly only pausing there for a moment before making his way back to her ear. He suckles on the lobe for a bit before speaking. "Do you want me to go down on you first?" His own cock jerks at the thought, he knows she can feel it against her belly, they're so close.

"Do you want to?" She's indecisive. When he does, it's wonderful. "I don't need it, not tonight, but if you do..."

He smiles and nuzzles her neck. It's no secret how much he enjoys how she tastes. "I didn't ask if you needed it. I asked if you wanted it."

She looks toward the door, realizes how likely it is that Lyra will be joining them at some point, and shakes her head. "No. Just... you."

Cam nods, not upset with that at all, and guides her to lay back against the bed. His body covers hers, making her feel so deliciously small. It's not that she doesn't value her strength... but Cam's size, the way he makes her feel, reminds her that it's okay to let him be the strong one once in a while. It makes her feel secure and protected, and happy. She'd never experienced this before him, this absolute and utter trust, and he's never let her down or made her regret giving that vulnerable part of herself to him.

She kisses him greedily, fingers digging in to his shoulders, body pressed to his. The hair on his chest is ticklish against her nipples, already drawn tight with arousal, and she makes a breathy sound when she feels his cock press against her hip, already so hard. This man wants her... so much, all the time, and it's so much better because of the depth behind it. She could never go back to sex to fulfill a need or provide a distraction; she's learned that it can be more, and that's all she ever wants now.

He reaches down and rubs his fingers between her legs, trying to get her ready enough to make this easy. He wants her but he won't hurt her and he needs her body to catch up to the feeling. She spreads her thighs to encourage him, wanting that touch, wanting more. It doesn't take his fingers long to coax out that moisture, and knowing he is doing that to her... that turns him on so much. He presses wide, open mouthed kisses to her neck, need ratcheting up a little, sucking on her skin and tasting her while he rocks against her.

"Now?" He asks, hoping she's ready, selfishly, because he wants to be inside of her so badly.

"Yes, yes," she says, impatience creeping into her voice, and that makes him smile, too. He kisses her mouth while he guides himself inside of her, slowly, inch by inch sinking into her body. It's still the most perfect thing ever.

"Love you," he says, mouth pressed to hers in a lingering kiss.

Vala doesn't let him get too far away... her legs wrap around his waist, arms keeping him close, moving to meet his body with every slow stroke in and out. It's quiet and soft and needy and desperate and there's love in every breath that they draw, so much that it makes her want to cry. She kisses his neck, tasting the sweat slowly building there, hands on his back feeling the shift of muscle and sinew as his body works. It's a slow rolling build inside of her and she knows she'll get there without having to do anything else, and she knows it's as much a mental thing as physical right now.

They're so close, so tight, pressed into one person, one being, and it's everything she needed. Everything. Her fingers dig in more and his body shifts to accommodate exactly what she wants. No words are needed, he just moves and it's perfect.

His breath puffs against her neck, shoulder, the top of her breast as he pumps in to her. It's less of a thrust and more of a rolling. They are savoring the connectivity of their bodies more than normal tonight. Vala inches her thighs up further, pulling him deeper. The new angle puts direct pressure on her clit.

Every roll brings out a gasp from her lips and Cam's cock hardens in reaction. She's tight, wet and hot and his erection is loving having all of her to himself. There's no part of her not focused on him - them - right now. He's slick with sweat now and their bodies are gliding against each other. He adds more of a hard thrust at the end of each rocking stroke and that seems to be exactly what she needs.

"Yes, that... darling..." Her voice is so deep, it's almost foreign to her own ears. There's a coating of arousal on her vocal chords and she can feel the twitch of his cock in approval. "I love you."

He grunts as he pumps harder against her. He's so close, he didn't know how close until she'd told him that she loved him.

"God, Vala, I'm going to come soon..." He won't leave her wanting. He'll hang on, he just wants to know how close she is. Her muscles are twitching around him and she shifts beneath him again. He's closer now, engulfed in her. Her body is like a suit surrounding him.

"Come then, Cameron." His throat releases a guttural groan and he's rapidly pounding against her now. She can picture how hard his cock is, the way the head flares and darkens right before. She imagines that she can feel the pre-cum leaking against her womb, buried right against it. It's such a turn on that when he tosses his head back, coming and biting his lip not to shout, that she comes too, right with him.

Together.

The rippling around his cock brings him higher and makes him grin. She's coming too.

When they're both done she holds him there, still wanting the pressure that his body on her brings. She loves his weight crushing her into the mattress.

"I've missed this." Vala wipes the sweat from his brow with the sheet. "I'm glad we have it again. Have the time, the inclination."

"I never lost the inclination to be close to you, just the circumstance," Cam says, not wanting her to feel as if that were even a possibility.

"Circumstances what they still are..." She nods towards the bathroom. Lyra's bound to be showing up sooner than later. She's glad the managed to grab the time for this. But she doesn't want to deny her baby comfort as soon as she needs it.

"Quick shower together." Her side eye makes him grin. "Water conservation and all."

"Since when have you been an avid environmentalist?"

Cam grins and kisses her lips before rolling off her and standing up. "Since it gets me into another naked situation with my wife."

"The things men will do for a beautiful woman." Vala holds out her hands and he helps her stand up and follow him in.

He starts the water and then ushers her in when it's a good temperature. "For one particular one, anyway. At least this man. I won't allow others to try to sway this one. She's mine."

"I'm pretty sure you're mine, but I'll go with what you said for now. Since I'm happy and sated." He pinches her ass and she squeals. But there are smiles plastered across their faces that are looking to stick around. At least they hope they will.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

They've been asleep for a few hours when they hear a very anguished cry. Vala bolts up but Cam's already out of bed. Lyra still seems mostly asleep but she's crying her eyes out, clearly having just awoken from a nightmare.

Cam shushes her and carries her back to their bedroom. Vala has the light turned on and is sitting up, waiting.

Her tears quiet once she sees both of her parents there. Her hair is damp from sweat and her face is a mess, nose running and eyes still wet. Cam grabs his abandoned shirt from the floor and wipes at her face with it. She jerks away from him, turning to her mother.

"They takes me when I go to sleep," she says, hugging Vala tightly. "Mommy, don't wan' go."

"You're not going anywhere," Vala says, curling herself around Lyra, like she can physically ground her to the spot. "We've got you."

Cam looks at the clock then and realizes that he and Vala have only been asleep for a couple of hours.

Once Lyra calms down she begins to fall back asleep quickly, and Cam decides to risk turning the light back off. He looks over at Vala just before he does it and sees that she's wide awake now, and knows - just from knowing her - that it isn't likely she'll get any more sleep before morning. She'll stay up, guarding her little girl from demons and bad guys and nightmares.

They'll have to call the doctor that Carolyn recommended in the morning. He has had enough of therapists to last him a life time after the military requirements that had to be fulfilled after his accident, but he has to admit that they have a job to do and sometimes they do it well. He hopes for Lyra that will be the case, and someone out there holds the magic words to make her okay with what happened, to make her understand it won't happen again.

At least not if Cam has anything to do about it.

xxxxxxxx

The call is quick and the woman is very understanding about everything. She's military and has a level of clearance that works for them. They get an appointment for that afternoon. Normally she doesn't fit children in so soon but she seems to understand the urgency of the situation.

"Hey, baby." He walks back into the bedroom after making the call. She's got Lyra curled onto her lap, napping with her head on her chest. "The doc will see us in a few hours."

She nods and looks down at their baby - stroking her dark hair and kissing the top of her head. "Do you think-"

"I know it will help. Probably us too." Cam slips in beside her. He got the kids up and off. Tyler went to grandma and grandpa's while Adria went to school. "Do you think that the other two will need it too?"

She leans forward so his arm can go around her shoulders and says. "Let's wait on them. It's not as traumatic. I mean, it's not good, but I think they are coping with it well. They've both been through a lot. Well, Adria has, and it doesn't seem to be bothering Tyler much. He's still pretty young."

Lyra stirs on her and Vala shushes her automatically. Her little hands stretch and a big yawn pops onto her face before her eyes blink open and she rubs the gunk away with her fists.

"Have a good nap, baby girl?" Cam kisses her forehead.

Lyra nods. "Hungry, daddy." She tips her head back and looks at Vala. "I didn't have bad dreams now."

"Good, Lyra. Daddy and I are going to take you to meet a nice lady in a little bit. Okay?"

Little wrinkles appear on her forehead as she thinks about meeting someone new. "She's nice?"

Cam nods and Vala answers. "Very nice." It takes a few glances between her parents to convince her that they aren't misleading her.

"I guess." She buries her head between Vala's breasts and hugs herself to her.

"Daddy will go make you some food now. Spaghetti O's alright?" She just nods against her mom without looking over. "Bring her down in a few," He speaks to Vala before kissing her lips and heading down to the kitchen.

While downstairs he calls his parents to ask if they'll bring Tyler back over and stay with him, so someone will be home when Adria's back from school. He has no idea how long it'll take with the doctor but the last thing he wants right now is to leave any of his children unguarded.

Especially Adria.

Luckily his parents have no objections at all.

"This is what we're here for, son," Frank says through the phone line. "We moved here to be closer to these kids, and if in doing that we can help them stay safe..."

"Thanks, Dad," Cam says. "I don't know what we'd do without you two around."

"Well, you won't have to, not for a long time," Frank reassures him. "We'll be there in about an hour."

"That sounds good, give us time to get Lyra ready."

The spaghetti-O's are almost done so Cam says goodbye to his father and hangs up the phone. It's good time, because Vala walks downstairs with Lyra in her arms just as Cam's blowing on the bowl. "I'll feed her, you go take a shower."

"Are you telling me that I smell, dear?"

"I would never," Cam says. "But she might, if you don't go clean up."

"Momma smelly!" Lyra announces, catching in quickly to what Cam was saying. "You can play wif rubba ducky."

"Oh, thank you, sweetheart. Rubber ducky and I will have a splendid time, scrubbing each other's backs, all nakedly..." Vala lingers on the words, trying to instill a mental image in Cam's mind.

Unfortunately Cam is still picking the duck, so it just makes him laugh. "You two have fun with that."

"Please do try to get spaghetti sauce all over Daddy," Vala calls out as she heads back upstairs.

xxxxxxxxxx

Fortunately for Vala, Lyra does her best and by the time she's done eating she and Cam are both in need of a good scrub.

"I hate Spaghetti O's," Cam says, making a face at Vala as they trade off. Vala heads to the bathroom that Adria and Tyler share while Cam showers off in the one attached to their bedroom. The interactions are smooth, long practiced. Lyra seems fine as long as at least one parent is with her, and happiest when they're both there.

xxxxxxx

Cam's answering the door when Vala and Lyra come downstairs. They spent some time playing with her in her room for a bit before Cam went down to get snacks set out for the kids. The hour passed more quickly than he was expecting.

Tyler spots Lyra in their mother's arms and waves. "Feeling better, sis?" She nods against Vala's shoulder. "Wanna play trucks?" When she shakes her head he asks if he can go play and Cam pats his head first.

"Go on, play. Mom and I have to take Lyra out for a bit. Grandma and grandpa will be here with you and Addy, when she gets home." Cam pushes him out of the room gently to go play.

"Thanks so much for everything." Vala hugs Wendy and Frank with her free arm in turn. "We really appreciate it."

Wendy hugs her back and kisses Lyra's cheek. "We're here for you two. That's what we told Cam on the phone."

"Any time."Frank adds. He kisses Lyra too before wishing them luck and heads off to serve Tyler his afternoon snack.

"Ready, baby?" Cam's hand is reaching for Vala's and she takes it.

xxxxxxxx

The wait isn't long when they get there.

"Welcome, Cam, Vala, and Lyra."

Dr. Grey is warm and happy and Lyra is pressed closely to Vala but as she talks she's slowly loosening her grip.

"How does this work?" Cam's not familiar with the family sort of therapy.

"Well, first I'd like to talk to all of you, then I'd love to talk to Lyra. You can stay in the room, of course, but I'd like to have a more one on one conversation with her." Melinda Grey was very calm and even in her speech making all three of them feel at easy.

They settle in on a small love seat in her office, Lyra on Vala's lap. Dr. Grey starts to talk at all of them but Cam can tell her words are directly at Lyra, phrased in ways that Lyra might understand.

After a few minutes of introduction, and Dr. Grey asking Lyra things about herself, she says, "Sometimes even when we're very good, bad things can happen to us. Lyra, your Mommy and Daddy told me that something bad happened to you."

Lyra immediately starts to look upset and fidgets on Vala's lap before shifting over to get into Cam's instead. "Uh huh."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

Lyra shakes her head.

"Honey-" Cam says, but Dr. Grey cuts him off.

"It's fine, Colonel Mitchell. No one is going to make Lyra talk about anything she doesn't want to talk about."

Lyra looks relieved to hear that. She stands between them, grasping the back of the couch, and then sits there - not on either of their laps, but between them. In a whisper that's not really very quiet at all she says, "Mommy, can we go get ice cream?"

"We'll get ice cream once we leave here," Vala says, smiling at her. "But we need to talk to Dr. Grey first."

"Actually, Lyra, if you want, I've got some toys right over there..." Dr. Grey points to a plastic chest. Lyra immediately looks intrigued. "Go ahead. You can play with them, and then pick out something to take home with you if you like it."

Lyra still hesitates, which alone tells Cam that she's not okay. Lyra's not normally a shy little girl, not at all. "Go on, sweetheart," he says. With that encouragement she scrambles off of the couch and over to the chest.

"We'll try to talk to Lyra again in a few minutes," Dr. Grey says to Cam and Vala, her voice lower. "Sometimes it helps them to feel like they're a little more in control of the situation. For now, we can talk about how she's been acting. Are there any problems? Behavioral issues? She has siblings, doesn't she? How has she been with them?"

"Fine with her brother and sister... but she has nightmares, won't sleep alone and likes the light on until she falls asleep," Vala says..

"And she doesn't want to be in a room without me or Vala," Cam adds. "Preferably both of us. That second day she was back, I had to leave for a few hours and she was hysterical."

Dr. Grey nods, making a note in her notebook. "And all of that is perfectly normal for a child who's undergone the trauma that she has. Do you know if there was any abuse while she was gone? Physical or sexual?"

Vala looks slightly sickened by the question, and Cam reaches over to take her hand while he answers. "No. She was given a thorough examination. No one hurt her."

"That's good," Dr. Grey says. "That will make this much, much easier for her to get past. And make no mistake; she will recover. She's young, and children have an amazing ability to adapt to things, and bounce back. She'll just need you to help her through it."

"Anything," Vala says, vehemently. "Just tell us what we need to do."

She looks back at Lyra playing. She seems a bit hesitant but then dives into play with each toy. "She's already improving I bet."

Cam and Vala observe her with the doctor while discussing ways to keep their routine somewhat normal and very scheduled.

When they have enough suggestions Dr. Grey calls Lyra back over. She looks at all the toys she's pulled out and picks up the plastic dinosaur before walking over. "Can I have this 'saurus?"

"Of course you can. I told you you could pick out anyone that you wanted didn't I?" Melinda's voice is so even and happy. Lyra smiles and kisses the new toy on the head. "Lyra?"

"Uh huh?" She shows her mom and dad her new toy before looking back over at the doctor. "Thanks." She adds as if she just remembered her manners.

"Can you tell me why you chose that toy?"

The little girl makes a thinking face and then stares at the plastic dino. She's clearly deciding if she thinks that she should tell her or not.

"I have a brudder. Tyla. He has lots o' 'saurus'. I can play wif him now." Lyra looks back at her parents again. Checking if that was the right answer.

Vala opens her arms to her and Lyra races into them. "You are a good little sister." Both Cam and Vala kiss her cheek in thanks for loving her family like she does and always thinking of them too, despite being so young.

"Can I ask you another question?" Melinda is gentle with her interrogation. Lyra nods, not quite as eager. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"Momma was shopping for some maccy cheese. Then the bad man took me. Wasn't momma's fault. I bited him and he didn't care..."

Vala hugs her tighter and Cam puts his arm around Vala's shoulders, tugging her flush with his side. "You're right, baby girl, it wasn't your momma's fault." Cam kisses Vala's temple after confirming what even his youngest knew to be true. He knows that Vala still blames herself.

"Nuh-uh wasn't momma's fault. Then bad man tell me mean things. Momma woulda made him stop saying them. I try no listening." Her tears gather then. Thinking about the things that Ventrell was telling her. "He says daddy never get me back and momma don't want Lyra back."

"That's not true, honey, not even close." Vala makes sure that she knows.

She thinks about the next bit and suddenly goes silent. She just shakes her head at Dr. Grey and the turns around to plant her face against her mother's neck.

The psychologist can tell that it's enough. So she stops pressing. "That's good, Lyra. Thanks for telling me a little bit. You know you're parents love you very much and that man wasn't being truthful, right?"

Lyra just nods, still unwilling to look over at the doctor.

"Good, Lyra. Would you like to come back and play with my toys some more in a couple days? Maybe we could talk some more too. You can tell me about how well that dinosaur gets along with Tyler's."

She doesn't respond at first. So Cam says, "I think it sounds fun. We need to let Melinda know how well her dino is fitting in, don't we, honey?"

"I 'pose." She's quiet but no longer upset. "Can we get ice cream now?" She adds remembering her earlier request.

"Yeah, we can." Vala lifts her as she stands and nods good bye to the doctor, leaving Cam to finish up. She wants to get Lyra out in the sun.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

They stop off at the park to enjoy the ice cream snack, since neither of them want to deal with a toddler and ice cream in a moving vehicle. It also gives Lyra the chance to play - or so they think. Once there, she shows no interest in running off like she normally would. She sits at Vala and Cam's feet and plays with her dinosaur while licking at a dripping popsicle. Every few minutes she looks up and around, then at her parents, and goes back to playing.

Cam and Vala talk quietly about Dr. Grey. Vala's reassured somewhat by the visit, confident now that they're at least doing everything to help her that they can.

"I've gotta go back to work tomorrow," Cam says. "You think you'll be okay on your own?"

Vala nods. "Dr. Grey said it was best to get her back into a normal routine, and that involves Daddy going off to work every day."

Lyra hears that and looks up. "Daddy, we go to work with you."

"You can't, sweetheart," Cam says. "You and your mom and Tyler have to stay at home."

"Nuh uh," she says, dropping the half-eaten popsicle on the ground. "We goed to work with you yesterday."

"That was different," Cam says, unsure how to explain it to her. "That was because you had to. Now you get to stay at home, where all your toys are."

"Daddy, no!" She stomps her foot and crosses her arms, an exact replica of her sister (and mother, though Vala would never admit it) when she's upset.

"We'll talk about it later." It's a dirty tactic, hoping that she'll just forget, but he wants to keep the afternoon as pleasant as possible so she associates nice things with going to visit Dr. Grey and doesn't put up a fight next time.

She holds her arms out, slightly too small to climb up onto the bench with them herself. Vala already has wet wipes out to clean off the sugary residue of the popsicle. "Ready to go back home and show off your new toy to your brother?"

"Uh huh," Lyra says. She looks at Cam like she doesn't quite trust him. "Daddy come home, too?"

"Of course," Cam says, picking her up as he gets to his feet. He can tell Lyra's sleepy and that makes sense, since she hasn't gotten her nap in today.

She falls asleep in the car on the way back to the house. Cam and Vala don't talk, out of fear of waking her up, but Cam reaches over to take Vala's hand. She smiles at him, and she looks so young and beautiful that he raises her hand to his lips and kisses her knuckles.

"What was that for?" She asks softly.

"Because I love you," he says, putting her hand back down but keeping their fingers linked. "That okay?"

"Mm, yes, I guess I'll allow it," she smiles back.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Tyler is excited when Lyra shows him the dinosaur that she got from the doctor. He picks it from her hand in the morning while they are eating cereal and inspects it.

"That's a pretty great dino, Lyra." He smiles at his sister around his spoonful of frosted flakes before handing it back.

She slept most of the night in her own bed and only ended up crawling in with Cam and Vala around three am. Luckily, Vala was able to get back to sleep. It seems that the therapist didn't just help Lyra. There hadn't been tears, just a mournful request that neither of them would dream of denying.

"We can play 'saurus when you done with breaky?" She tilts her head and looks into his eyes before giving her best puppy dog look. Cam knows the look. He's gotten it plenty from her mother and he instantly feels bad for any boyfriend in her future. Her very, very far away future.

Tyler just nods and it makes her happy. Which is good for Cam because he's about to have to leave for the mountain. He looks over at Vala and she just gives him a helpless look. She has to stay home with it. Whatever reaction Lyra has. He wants to make sure she's alright. Although he could stick around if it was truly needed it's better to give her the normal routine. Daddy has to work. Daddy has a ton of paperwork still to deal with as a part of her rescue mission.

He glances at the clock, there's not a minute left to spare. "Okay, kiddos, time for work."

"Daddy doesn't have to go?" Lyra's lip is trembling and he can see she's on the verge of a breakdown already. "Please."

"I do, baby girl." He hugs her tightly before ruffling Tyler's hair and kissing the top of Adria's head indicating she needs to get her things. He's going to drop Addy off at school and pick her up on his way home. They don't quite trust the buses yet and it's not out of the way. "I'll be home with Addy at three."

She looks up at her mother. Wanting back up. "Momma make daddy stay?"

Cam sees his wife's heart bust into a million pieces. She knows that if she asks he'll stay. He can't tell her no. So he waits.

"I can't, sweetheart. Daddies need to work to make sure Mommies and their babies can eat and have clothes and sparkly tiaras."

Lyra seems to think about it for a moment. Tears are leaking out of the sides of her eyes. "I can give back my tiara if Daddy can stay home."

"Oh, honey." Cam's hugging her again. They're going to be late but right now this is more important. "You don't need to give that back. I have to go. I'll be home later. Momma will protect you and I'm sure grandma and grandpa will be over later. Plus I don't have a dinosaur to play with and I don't want to feel left out. So you go play with Tyler. I'll be home before you know it."

Tyler seems to catch on. "Come on Lyra. I'll get my dinos and we can have a match."

She seems to not want to go but the pull of playing with her new toy is too strong. Which is a good sign to both her parents. When she and Tyler are gone, Cam turns to Vala. "If it gets bad..."

"I'll call you." They hear the lilt of her giggle and hope that it won't come to that. "Addy! Daddy is ready to go."

The other girl comes racing in. "I'm ready. But I could stay home if you want, to help with Lyra."

"School's-" Cam and Vala both start in.

"Important, yeah yeah." She huffs and heads out to her dad's car.

"Kids these days." Cam pulls Vala into his arms and kisses her softly, lightly but still filled with love and a little promise for later. "I'm going to be late."

"Just tell them your wife, the sexy alien one, made you late." Vala pulls him in for a deeper kiss. "Now go, before I make it true."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Morning passes more or less quietly and Vala's actually starting to think that in only a few days things might be better, but of course, in thinking that she causes it to no longer be so.

There's a loud shriek and she bolts up in her chair. Tyler stands in the doorway with his eyes wide, like he's never heard that noise before. Vala takes off at a run, stopping in the doorway. Lyra's standing there screaming her head off. She doesn't stop even when she sees Vala, even when Vala picks her up. It's only after she's in Vala's arms being tightly held that she quiets.

"She went to naptime but I wasn't sleep!" Tyler says, sounding like he's afraid he's in trouble. "I wanted an apple."

He has the apple in his hand, one little bite taken out of it. He looks like he's going to cry and Vala knows she should do damage control there too but right now she can only focus on one of them. He turns around and runs off, letting the apple drop to the ground.

It takes Vala a while to calm Lyra down. She sits on Tyler's bed and talks to her in a quiet voice, telling her that everything is fine and that her mother has her.

Lyra falls asleep like that, clinging to Vala, and Vala carries her out of the room. She puts her on the couch, hesitating at leaving her but ultimately walking away because she knows she needs to go and find Tyler.

He's sitting in the hallway upstairs crying. "Come here, sweet boy," Vala says. He runs over to her and she picks him up.

"Momma, I didn't mean to," he says, sniffling messily.

"It's okay, you didn't do anything wrong." Vala begins to walk back downstairs with him. "I think Lyra just gets afraid when she wakes up and no one is there."

"She thinks someone bad has her?" Tyler guesses. He rubs his cheek, and probably some snot, onto Vala's shoulder. She grimaces but has had to deal with much worse so for now ignores it.

"That's exactly it," Vala says. "So why don't we sit in here with her while she naps? You can get your toys, or watch a cartoon if we turn the sound down."

"Cartoon," Tyler says, and Vala can see that he looks sleepy, too. She hopes they'll both get a nap in, because she's already feeling exhausted.

His crying jag must have pulled a lot out of him because he's asleep not fifteen minutes later. It's only eleven am and she knows that they'll both wake up hungry.

The living room is visible from the kitchen so Vala gets up to make some sandwiches. She decides on peanut butter and jelly for both kids and she cuts the bread into shapes. When the meal is prepared she carries it into the living room and sets it on the table. Then she grabs a few juice boxes and brings them in before settling back into her spot on the couch. She pets Lyra's hair as she sleeps hoping to help chase away any demons that might still be haunting her.

Her cell rings and she jumps to answer it before it startles either of the children. She flips it open and then slowly walks out of the room before talking.

"Cameron?"

"Hey, baby. Thought I'd check in on the situation."

Just hearing the sweet tempo of his voice soothes her frayed nerves just enough. "She had an attack when she fell asleep and woke up when Tyler went to get a snack. That scream..."

"Do you need me to-"

"No. No... We're okay now. I got her calmed down and then had to comfort Tyler. Poor little guy though it was his fault."

She hears him sigh over the phone. "I should have called in today, I'm the boss, I can do that right?"

"Darling, you need to work. She needs to know that you leaving her doesn't result in her being taken..."

"Yeah, and it sounds like that's going swell," Cam says, frustration in his voice. "She needs to know the same thing about you."

"One step at a time. Dr. Grey said it wouldn't happen overnight." Despite knowing the truth of the words, Vala can't help but feel a bit of desperation at how long this might take. She stands close enough to the room the kids are napping in to be within view if Lyra wakes up. "She's not the only one that's terrified to be alone right now."

Cam knows what it takes for Vala to admit that. He also knows how she reacts to situations she's not in control of. She's had so much control taken away from her, her entire life - Qetesh, the Ori... even Adria, as much as Cam can't deny loving the outcome of that, wasn't Vala's choice.

She's flourished as a mother and Cam thinks it's no small part in thanks to the fact that these children love her, depend on her, and need her. For the first time in maybe her entire life, she's in control of someone else. He's spent a lot of time wondering about her past, her life, some of the little tics and habits she has, but he's never asked.

He knows the big picture, he's got the important stuff down. But he thinks there's a lot she hasn't shared. He loves that she can still surprise him so regularly. He hopes that never ends.

"I'm still coming home early," Cam says. That part they'd already agreed on, since he's picking Addy up from school.

"I'm glad," Vala admits. "I don't like doing this alone. I feel like..."

"You're doing fine. Good. Perfect." He repeats it a few times, in variations, just so she doesn't interrupt him to argue. He doesn't want her doubting herself or her ability to keep them safe. He doesn't think even if he'd been there, that he could have stopped Ventrell from taking Lyra. In fact, it might have gone much worse - no doubt he had a weapon on him. There could have been lives hurt, their children - Vala, Tyler.

She sees a head lift off of the couch and hurries in. Lyra sees her and she's still sleepily confused but holds her arms out. "I've got to go, little one is awake."

"Daddy?" Lyra says, seeing the phone.

"Oh, hold on. I think she wants to talk to you." Vala picks up Lyra, and transfers the phone to her ear. "Go on, Daddy can hear you."

"Daddy, come home? I misses you." She says it in a sad little voice, and sighs at the end.

Cam's heart breaks just a little. He struggles to keep his resolve. "I'll be home soon, sweetie. I have to go back to work now, but I love you. Tell your Momma I love her, too."

He hangs up, and Lyra pulls her head back from it. "Daddy loves you. And me too."

"Of course he does." Vala kisses Lyra's forehead. "Do you need to go potty?"

She shakes her head. "Hungry."

"Well, good thing I have lunch all ready." Vala smiles at her.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Cam and Adria walk through the door at a little after three pm. The thundering of little feet greets him almost immediately as Lyra come barreling out of the kitchen and directly into his arms.

"Missed you, daddy." She buries her face against his neck and he hugs her tightly.

She smells like sunshine and peanut butter. "Enjoy your lunch?"

"Mmhmm. Momma and Tyler and me ate them out on the porch. I got peanut butter on my shirt." She leans back so she can show him where the glob had landed. "Momma scrubbed it off and said we not wasting another shirt when we still got dinner to eat."

"Yeah, momma doesn't like doing laundry much, does she?"

"Cause it's boring." She leans further away trying to get him to swing her back and forth, tilting her head and grinning. "Can you carry me for a bit?"

"Sure can, pumpkin." He looks down at Adria. "Better get that homework done."

Adria rolls her eyes but listens and heads to the dining room table to spread out her worksheets.

"I thought I heard a commotion." Vala comes around the corner and just stops to take in the view of father and daughter. Unlike the other two children, she alternates who she needs more. Tyler's much more Vala's where Adria is very much Cam's. Lyra doesn't seem to have a person who makes her feel more safe, more comfortable or that she can lean on more. She really prefers both of them, together. Vala can't argue with that. She also prefers when they are both in the same place. Preferably naked.

"Baby, how was your day?" He lets his briefcase down on the table and walks forward to meet her half way. She's pulled towards him, they're almost magnetic when they are in a room, drifting towards one another until they are touching. Their lips meet and when they pull back Lyra has a huge smile plastered across her face.

"Daddy can't leave." She's got one hand on Vala now too. "Then momma has no one to kiss."

"She better not find anyone else to kiss either." Cam kisses Lyra's temple before leaning in and pressing his lips to his wife once more, this time with a little more passion. "No kissing anyone but me." He whispers.

"What about me?" Lyra's leaning across to Vala now and her mother takes her in her arms. "I want kisses."

"Well, I suppose mommy can kiss you too." Cam grins as Vala mirrors his early kiss and brushes her opposite temple with her lips. "And Tyler and Adria as well, but that's all."

That seems to satisfy her and she slides down to go help her big sister with her homework.

When she's cleared earshot he pulls Vala into his arms and hugs her close. "How'd today go?"

"It was bumpy, but better than I was expecting... There was just the one incident with her waking up alone. Poor Tyler..."

"He alright?" Cam lets his hands wander over her back, touching and caressing, not letting her pull away.

She sighs, hot air against his neck. "I think so. He seemed to pop out of it pretty quick after I settled her and found him. He's so sweet."

"He's such a momma's boy." She spanks him lightly and he nips at her jaw in retaliation. "I'm his momma's boy too."

"That's right you are." She lets her fingers travel up to lightly scratch through the hair at the base of his neck. She tilts his head down to kiss him again. Lips locked and noses brushing. Her mouth opens and he accepts the invitation. Their tongues caress each other and both of them are forgetting they are in the foyer still.

"Daddy!" Tyler interrupts them expertly, hugging both their legs and wiggling to get in the middle. "Gotta show you what I made today!"

Cam picks up Tyler and gives him a hug, too. He still can't fight the urge to be overprotective with all of his kids. He imagines it'll be a long time before that fades. "What'd you make today, buddy?"

"Mommy helped," he says, giving Vala the credit that he feels she's earned. "And Lyra a little bit too. Not really but Mommy said she had to feel like it so I gave her some legos to play with but really she didn't make nothing."

Cam puts Tyler back down and he immediately takes one of Cam's hands and one of Vala's, leading them both to the back. "I've already seen it, you know," Vala reminds him.

"Uh huh." Tyler doesn't seem overly concerned.

Vala glances toward Adria's bedroom. "You show Daddy and I'll be there in a second."

Tyler gives her a grumpy look but apparently decides it's more important to get Cam in to see his creation.

Vala slips off and stands in Adria's doorway. Adria's sitting crosslegged on the floor with a school book open in front of her, a pencil in her hand. Lyra's sitting beside her also holding a pencil and also scribbling on a sheet of paper.

"Are both of my girls studying hard?" Vala asks. Adria looks up, and Vala's staring back into eyes just like her own.

"Uh huh. I have to do a page of math problems, and Lyra's practicing her A's."

Before Lyra'd been taken Adria had been dead set on teaching her sister how to write her alphabet, despite Vala warning her that at two Lyra just couldn't learn that fast. She's too busy learning other things; words, speech patterns, how to get into things, what flavor jelly she likes best.

But Adria wants to try and Vala loves the nurturing relationship there. The age difference between Adria and Lyra seems big enough that there's no competitiveness, and sometimes Lyra annoys Adria but those moments are fewer and fewer the older Adria gets.

She's really a wonderful big sister. Vala makes a note to do something for Adria and let her know how much that is appreciated.

Vala joins them on the floor and Lyra immediately crawls into her lap. "A's, Mommy."

"Those are perfect, sweetheart. You're getting better and better." Of course they only loosely resemble the letter, swirls and wavy lines.

"I'm teaching her how to write my name," Adria says, grinning. "I told her it was the most important word, anyway."

Vala laughs. "At least start with her own name."

"That's no fun!"

"You know what is fun?" Vala leans over and taps the page of the textbook. Adria makes a funny face at her, crossing her eyes and sticking out her tongue. "Momma, I was out of school for like a week and they're still behind me."

"Oh, the pain a little genius must endure," Vala says, dryly. "I weep for you."

"Sarcasm is unattractive, mother." Adria huffs at Vala.

"No, it's not," Vala counters. "It's very becoming. Just be glad you inherited that trait from me."

"What did I inherit from Dad?" Adria's doing her math problems while talking now.

Vala's a bit taken back by the question. Lyra's looking up at her and smiling. "Bad jokes, mommy."

"Yes, indeed, daddy and Adria both tell horrendous jokes don't they, baby girl." Vala grins over at her oldest. "You get lots of things from your father. Sense of humor is just one of them. I'm praying the other two don't end up with it too."

"That's not a thing, really though." Adria just shrugs it off and goes back to concentrating on her homework. "Probably something I can't notice yet."

"Yes, I'm sure we'll know more when you're older." Vala kisses her head and gets up. "I'm going to bring your sister down with me if she's done with her lesson for the day."

"I guess, those A's look decent." She looks at Lyra. "Good job today, Lyra. We'll do B's tomorrow, okay?"

"Yah, 'kay! Can I play with Tyler now?" Adria smiles and nods and goes back to her homework.

"If you need any help-"

"I'll call auntie Sam." Adria giggles as her mother rolls her eyes and walks out of the room. She's gone back to the equations when Vala clears her throat. She looks up at her peaking around the doorframe.

"You know your mom's pretty smart too." She's a bit insulted at the brush off for assistance.

"When I need to commandeer a ship or steal some treasure I'll let you know."

"Such big words like 'commandeer' now. But you're right, I'm much better at those sorts of things, but I can do some math too." Vala leaves her with that and heads back down to find Tyler and Lyra both teach Cam all about the lego tower.

Lyra's delightful giggle is followed by her explanation. "That's where princess lives, daddy."

"You won't fit in there." Cam's looking back and forth between the small girl and the tower.

"No, daddy!" She pulls out the princess lego to show him. "This princess. I live in the room upstairs."

"Well, you're a princess, and your room doesn't look like that..." Cam still looks doubtful, which makes her giggle.

"Daddy, I'm not a princess like her, see? She gots yellow hair."

"You're a different kind of princess, huh?" Cam asks her.

She nods and looks at the door. "I am a princess but I don't got yellow hair like Cin'rella and like Princess Sleepy Booty."

Cam kisses her on the cheek. "Your mom's a princess, too, you know that?"

Vala grins and sits close enough to Cam to feel the heat of his thigh and arm pressed against her. He shifts, putting that arm around her and drawing her in. She feels contentment wash through her as she rests her head on his shoulder. Nothing seems quite so bad when he's this close to her.

It's still a bit strange to her that she should have someone like this in her life. All of the little things that a marriage is, that a family is; she knows what he smells like, knows his foulest moods and most annoying habits, knows the things she hates about him and yet still would never change. She keeps waiting for the day when she'll wake up and this will stop holding the appeal it does now... and dreading the day when the same happens for him. It's like a dream she doesn't want to wake from, and she doesn't believe in happy endings but for the first time in her long life she feels like she's serving some purpose. Her children - her husband. She's defined by them now because she chooses to be. It doesn't mean her life before them was any less, just that for her, for now, this is the best she can imagine.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Cam asks, interrupting her with a smile. "You zoned out there. T-man was trying to explain the finer aspects of his architectural genius."

"I build it high so I can knock it over," Tyler says, looking very pleased with himself. "I let Lyra knock it over once too."

"It was FUN!" Lyra bounces on his lap. "I can knock it over again?"

"I guess," Tyler says, and starts to rebuild it for her. Lyra scrambles off of Cam's lap to go over to him and watch him work.

"Tyler, will you stay here with your sister?" Vala asks. "I'm going to steal daddy."

She gets to her feet nimbly, and then holds out a hand to help Cam up. He winces, thigh spasming. The longer he's out of the field the more his aches and pains become pronounced. Or maybe it's just age catching up with him.

Luckily he's got Vala to help try and keep him in shape. He keeps her hand once he's standing and when they're in the hallway pulls her in for a kiss. "So, really, what were you thinking about in there?"

"Nothing important." She doesn't want to be a downer and she knows that answering honestly will be. "Just how great of a mother I am."

His nose glides across her cheek as his lips find her ear. "That's not all of it. Come on, out with it. Nine years means I can tell."

She tips her head to the side to let him tease her neck. "I just can't believe all of this is real sometimes." There's a nod of agreement from him before he resumes kissing and tasting her skin. "I have a... I'm scared that one day you'll wake up and look at me and-"

"That will never happen." The tone of her voice clues him in to where she's going. "This sort of love never ends."

Her hands cup his hips and squeeze. "You don't know that. You could look at me one day and feel nothing. It happens all the time."

"It's far more likely to happen the other way around." He kisses her lips as he pulls back. Gentle, soft pressure. Her eyes are there wet, shining and so very dark blue. He just looks into them for a minute. "I'm getting old. Injuries flaring up, pain from my past haunting me more often. You're far too lovely to want to stay with a crippled husband."

"Cameron, I'd never-"

"I don't think that you would. I try not to think any thoughts like that. Not ever. We've got enough on our plate without the fear of losing each other. I trust you, implicitly, with my heart. Baby, you're my only. If you ever stop loving me..."

Her hands hold his cheeks and pull him back in for her mouth to devour. This is why she didn't want to talk about it. It's unfounded fears and she knows it, but sometimes her old habits flare up and the fears take over.

"Forever." She kisses him again and there's a dampness on her cheeks.

"Mommy daddy okay?" Lyra is looking at them from around the corner. A worried expression masks her lovely face.

"We're okay baby girl." Cam dries Vala's tears and puts his arms out for Lyra to come in to. "I thought you were playing with Tyler?"

"I heard momma cry. She 'kay?" her tiny palm reaches for Vala's cheek and caresses it. "I'm 'kay momma, dun cry."

"Oh, darling." She kisses her cheek and grabs her into her own arms. "I'm glad you're okay. More than I can ever tell you."

The upset mood seems to have rubbed off on Lyra, despite Cam and Vala's best efforts to push past it. She allows them to pass her back and forth but doesn't want to be on the ground at all. She's all right when Vala walks into the kitchen as long as Cam is still holding her. When Cam does set her down she starts to cry loudly until Cam picks her back up.

"Come on, sweetheart, Daddy needs to help Mom make dinner. Don't you want to eat?" He asks, trying to soothe her whining. He rubs a hand over her back.

"Nuh!" She says, snuffling loudly against his shoulder.

"Go on," Vala says. "Go watch tv. I'll enlist one of the other minions to help with meal preparation."

To their credit, Tyler and Adria don't blink at being referred to as minions.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

After dinner, Cam still isn't having much luck. He tries to put Lyra down again only to have her cry and act like he's mortally wounding her by no longer being in physical contact.

Adria stands in the doorway and watches. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah," Cam says, resigning himself to having a permanent attachment for a while. He settles onto the couch with his laptop to answer a few emails, though it's somewhat difficult with Lyra in his lap. "She's fine, Addy."

Adria shrugs and then goes back to her room.

Cam tries awkwardly to maneuver his inbox but it just isn't working. Lyra wants to push buttons, asks what he's doing on the screen, jabs her finger at the mouse pointer despite him asking her not to. He sighs, trying to stem the frustration, and says, "Why don't you go find your mom, sweetheart?"

"You find her wif me," Lyra says. She rubs at a cheek in a way that lets Cam know she's tired and he feels awful for feeling grateful. "Mommy okay? Where Mommy?"

She looks around somewhat frantically and Cam hates that he just inadvertently put that idea into her head. She shows signs of tears again and Cam decides to give up the ghost when it comes to doing work. Lyra _does_ still need that special attention and he can't deny her that.

"Mom's fine, but why don't we go find her, just to let her know we missed her?" Cam asks.

Lyra nods and relaxes a little, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Kay, find Mommy."

They 'find' Mommy sitting in Adria's room with her going over homework. Lyra wants away from Cam to run back over to Vala. She inspects Vala then turns to Cam and says, "Mommy okay."

Vala gives him a strange look. Cam shrugs and she gets the universal sign for 'I'll explain later.' Lyra yawns again widely and Cam decides to pounce on the opportunity. "Lyra, honey, your mom and I both really want to read you a story tonight. Do you think you could let us?"

Lyra is usually quick to catch on when they're trying to put her to bed but either she's tired enough to miss it or just doesn't care tonight. She nods and holds her arms out to Vala. "Kay."

Vala gets up with Lyra in her arms. "How about a princess adventure tonight?" She suggests one of her favorites - using Lyra's title for it.

She gets a sleepy nod against her shoulder and they walk to her room. Cam follows closely, is hand firmly on the small of her back. He doesn't talk until they are all settled in her room. Lyra's pajamas go on without issues and she lets Vala help her with her teeth before snuggling under the blankets with mommy at her head - stroking her hair. Cam picks up her hand and he starts to read her the story. They've done this one a million times for her so Vala knows exactly when to take over and make her favorite voices. It's all very familiar and comforting because before they are halfway through she's asleep. They continue for a bit longer until her hand goes completely slack against Cam's. Then he helps Vala to her feet to not disturb her and they dim the lights and leave the door open a crack as they leave.

Vala pauses as if she can't decide where to go but she sees Cam giving her a look, asking what she needs, and she ducks into their bedroom and waits for him.

"Shut the door." She whispers, just in case something is going to wake the baby. When he listens and moves in close to her the first thing she does is look up at him, her lips trembling and he seems to know what she needs - always. So he takes her in his arms and just holds her. "I just want her to be alright."

Cam props his cheek against the top of her head. "I know, baby, I do too. But she's gonna take more time." He hears the quiet sniffles as she buries her head deeper into his embrace. "We are doing the best we can, honey. The best."

"I keep thinking that there is something more. Something I'm missing. I'm her mother, I'm supposed to be able to fix everything. Make it better..."

His arms squeeze tighter, feeling her anguish and trying to soak it up, take some of it into himself. His lips plant kisses all along her head, wherever he can reach. "You are, baby. We just need to love her and accept that there is no magic fix. Just be there for her. She can't do it alone and we can't get her past it faster than she can cope. We've got another appointment with Melinda soon."

"You're good at making me feel better." She's feeling needy right now. There is a great desire for comfort and a feeling of being loved. She wants his skin on hers. The best she can do right that second is to let her hands slip under his shirt and rest on his back. He's warm and soft and she groans with a sudden intense wanting. One she can't fulfill yet. They've got two more children awake and she doesn't want quick. She doesn't want to be rushed. Just him and her, naked, breathing each other in, together as one.

Her growing arousal and need are evident to Cam and he wishes they could just take this for themselves. He wants to fix something for her. But Adria needs homework checked still and Tyler will want to play one last game of trucks before bed time. "Later." He whispers against her head. "I'll make you feel good, sweetheart."

She feels her lips turn up in a small grin. Her husband is the best one there is. She has no doubt. "You already did."

Adria's homework is reviewed (somewhat unnecessarily, since there isn't a single wrong answer). Vala makes a very quick dinner for them and they opt for eating in the living room instead of the kitchen - Vala's choice, so she can snuggle into Cam.

"You two are ridiculous," Adria announces with a dramatic sigh.

Cam throws a pillow at her, which makes Tyler jump up and grab a pillow off of the arm chair to throw, too. His aim and strength are a little off and it just lands on the floor beside Vala's feet.

Laughing, Vala says, "All right, no pillow throwing until dinner is finished. I don't feel like cleaning up spilled food tonight."

"Daddy started it," Tyler says, just in case he's about to get into trouble.

"I know he did, and Daddy's going to be in the time out corner if he does it again." Vala kisses Cam's cheek when he groans. His skin is stubbled under her lips and it sends a surge of heat through her. She rests her head on his shoulder again, taking a deep breath and surrounding herself with the smell of him... aftershave and deodorant and just _Cam_ after a long day at work.

"Addy, take the plates into the kitchen," he says, once they're all done. He stretches out a little more on the couch and pulls Vala into his lap. "Bedtime in 30 minutes, buddy."

"Aw, dad!" Tyler says, mimicking the way Adria always says it. He settles in with his toys and gets lots in a world of his own making.

"Can I use the computer, Daddy?" Adria asks sweetly. "I want to play a game."

Cam pretends to think it over and then nods. "Thirty minutes, and no beating my high score on anything."

"Thanks!" Her face lights up and she runs into the next room.

"What is she playing?" Vala asks, running her hands up and down Cam's arm, just feeling the strength of muscle there. He does the same, hand playing at her hip, just touching.

"I brought home some tactical scenarios that the SGC uses to test new recruits," Cam says. "Thought she could use something a little more challenging but damn if she isn't close to beating the first level already. Still, it'll take her a while."

Vala's impressed. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"She needs direction," Cam says. "Should I have asked you about it?"

Vala shakes her head. "No, I trust you."

She presses her mouth to his jaw again, tongue darting out to lick and feel the roughness. His eyes flutter shut and she shifts to press her thigh against his crotch and feel him hardening. Her nails scrape over his arm and it's not even like that's a particularly sensitive spot but right now everything is. "Thirty minutes," he reminds her.

"I think I can find something to amuse myself for that long..." She dips her head and kisses his neck again. Nothing too risque with Tyler right there, but he's used to seeing his parents be affectionate.

"I was afraid of that..." Cam reaches over and snags the blanket on the couch beside them, draping it over them, just in case. Vala's face lights up and she takes that as some sort of permission granted to let her hands wander even further. She finds the shape of him through the sweatpants he'd changed into and then slides her hand down the front. He's half hard, heavy against her palm, skin soft and velvety and easy to wrap her fingers around. He breathes in deep. "You are so wrong."

"I know." She nips at his earlobe and then, with a glance toward Tyler, takes her hand back out. "We should go out this weekend. Just the two of us, so I can do that again..."

"You think she'll..." He means Lyra, and Vala instinctively gets that.

"We'll see what Dr. Grey things. If leaving her with your parents would be good..."

"And if she okays it?" Cam says, wanting to go back to what she was saying before. "Where should we go? Movie theater?"

"I think so," she says, resting her head on his shoulder while his hand moves under her shirt, fingers splaying across her stomach. "Somewhere nice and dark and private... so I can do that again..."

"And not stop there?" He's an adrenaline junkie... they both are. The idea of getting each other off in a public place... it's not something they've done before and he's not sure where it's coming from but he approves. She can tell that by the way he's hard now against her.

"We'll have to pick something that's been out for awhile..." She's wiggling on his lap now and grazing his hardening cock with her thigh. His fingers open further and his palm slides upwards until he's touching the swell of the underside of her breasts. "So the theater is empty."

He doesn't want to get caught either. Just the idea of making her come in the middle of the theater does so much for him. "I think it will be pretty easy to find something that we haven't seen that's been out awhile. Since we never go to the movies."

Her mouth is teasing down his neck and his finger catches a nipple and she muffles a moan against him.

"Momma?" Tyler's up and next to them before either of them can register that he's not on the floor any longer. He's climbing up onto Vala and Cam quickly pulls his hand away. "Can we have ice cream?"

"Oh, sweet boy, not tonight, it's too late." She looks at the clock and sees that only 15 minutes have passed. "Do you want to play trucks with daddy for a bit?" He doesn't seem interested he just snuggles into her lap leaning against Cams chest and playing with the buttons on the polo Vala is wearing. He likes to button and unbutton them.

Cam doesn't blame him. He enjoys unbuttoning Vala's clothes as well. But for much different reasons. Tyler tries to stop it, but a big yawn escapes him. "Can I just lay here until bed time?" Vala cups his cheeks and brings him forward so she can kiss his forehead.

"You can go to bed now if you want, sweety. You don't have to stay up." He just shakes his head and looks up as his dad. The stubble on his chin seems to fascinate him and he starts running his fingers all through it.

"You're tickling daddy, Ty man." That makes him giggle and wiggle around on Vala's lap. Which sends her into some sensitive areas on her husband. One in particular that needed some cooling off before getting up. Cam starts tickling them both in retaliation.

They force themselves to behave - which involves Vala moving _off_ of Cam - until Tyler's bedtime. "You get him sorted and I'll go tell Addy computer time is over."

"Night night, Daddy," Tyler says, giving Cam a hug. Cam kisses his baby soft cheek and then musses his hair. "See you in the morning!"

"Bright and early," Cam promises him.

He finds Adria in front of the computer frowning furiously at it. She barely spares Cam a glance when he walks in. "Daddy, I can't solve it."

He stands over her shoulder to see which exercise she's on right now. Still level one but three away from progressing. He's seen college graduates give up before getting this far.

"You'll get there." He squeezes her shoulder. She doesn't ask for hints. Adria likes tackling things by herself. She's stubborn and hot tempered and brilliant, and Cam loves watching her mind grow. "But not tonight. Bedtime."

"Dad!" She whines. "Can I stay up if I read?"

"As long as you're in bed, and not past nine," he says. Normally he'd relent and give her more computer time - after all, it's highly insulting to insist that an almost nine year old have the same bed time as her five year old brother - but he has ulterior motives tonight.

Like wanting to make sure that Adria isn't wandering the house, so he can get Vala alone in bed sooner. Adria agrees readily enough though and Cam gives her a hug and tells her go get into her pajamas.

He ducks into Lyra's room just to check on her and make sure she's still sleeping soundly. She is, arms splayed out across the bed, hair a complete mess, mouth open and drooling on the pillow.

She looks just like Vala when she sleeps. (Though, wisely, Cam will keep that observation to himself.)


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

He feels a hand on the back of his shirt and sees Vala there beside him. "All clear," he whispers, and they walk back out. She looks at him like she wants to eat him alive and that same tingle from earlier reignites. He shuts the door behind him, actually locking it this time, and pulls her into his arms. "Now what was that earlier, something about a movie...?"

She shivers in delight and wraps her arms around his neck. Her mouth is close to his but not touching yet, smiles on both of their faces, dancing around the kiss that will eventually happen. "Mm, yes, perhaps a night away isn't such a terrible idea..."

"It's been a while," he agrees. "Feels like even longer, with what all happened."

She nods and bits her bottom lip. He starts to sway slightly with her, not really dancing to any specific tune, just moving together. Her smile softens and sweetens and she rests her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for catering to my voyeuristic tendencies."

"Voyeristic? Oh, no," he counters. "Exhibitionist, maybe. You don't get to do the watching."

"What do I get to do, then?"

His fingers tug at her shirt and he pulls it off, pausing in their movement to kiss a delicate pale shoulder. "You get to do whatever the hell you want, sweetheart."

"You," she says, returning the favor by taking his shirt off of him and then scooting forward. The material of her bra is all that separates them from the waist up. His hands close around her waist, and she feels so small when he does that, feels like his hands are huge on her, and she has to kiss him then. She turns her mouth toward his and lets him fill the gap.

There's a fluid motion and she gasps because he's lifting her up. Her legs wrap around his waist and he carries her the short distance to the bed. He's surprised that his bad leg doesn't offer much protest, but it doesn't matter; this is fine for now. She hits the bed first and he catches himself above her, bending to kiss her more deeply.

She's got her legs locked around him and her hips are starting a slow grind against his pelvis. He's softened from earlier and she can feel him start to become aroused again. She's been wet for what feels like hours, but she calmed a little after sliding off his lap.

"You taste good." His mouth opens wider and their tongues meet before they can close their lips around them. He gets tingles from the slick surface of her tongue gliding across his. She's sweet and clean and her mouth is heated under his. He pushes more and the bed indents more under their combined weight. He can't get enough of her all of a sudden. Not that he's really surprised but this. He often can never get close enough. She's gasping for air when he parts their mouths and Cam decides to divert the attention to her neck and down to her breasts. They silky, blue cups brush his cheek when he gets closer and he kisses along the hem line of her bra.

She scratches her fingers lightly through his hair as he noses her bra aside to expose more breast. The sensations course through her and her nipples peak. Vala's arches her chest up and begs for more. She wants him to suckle her - lips circling her nipple and hard suction applied. She misses the hormonal assistance from her milk letdown at times like this. Every feeling that tickled her breast was amplified.

"Take it off already." She's holding his head to her at the same time making it hard for him to follow instructions. But Cam is capable and he manages to get a hand behind her on her next arching movement. He's learned the dexterity to free her of those contraptions over the years and he pops the clasp quickly and his teeth tug at it until her nipples are exposed. "Now. Suck."

Now, they want his lips on them. Vala thinks she might die if he doesn't take one into the hot cavern of his mouth. She opens her eyes to watch and tries to direct his head, but he's insistent on doing it his own way. He brushes the underside of her breast with his nose, making a trail all the way to the tip of her hard nipple. His tongue catches the tip as he's pulling further away. Now she's whimpering and her hips are rolling more anxiously against him.

"Baby, you're impatient tonight," He whispers before kissing her lips again. Cam uses the space to remove her bra and tosses it across the room. He palms the sides of each breast and just looks at them. Perfect size. Perfect eager nipples waiting for his attention. He thumbs over one and watches at it pebbles even further.

"I'm horny." She wiggles a bit trying to entice him as well as relieve some of the pressure building between her legs. "God, I am so wet. I can feel it."

Cam's cock jumps at her words. So breathy and deep. The impact is increased by the message delivered. The verbal confirmation about how much she wants him. He tugs at the hem of her pants and she lifts her hips for easy access but he doesn't take them off.

"Don't want to wait," She whines now. His finger teases along her hip, back to her ass and then back around to her belly button. The other hand squeezes her breast and takes time rubbing up and over her nipple.

"You're so soft. Everywhere." Cam leans over her, while teasing the flesh under the waist of her pants, and take the opposite nipple between his lips. He gently suckles knowing it won't be enough. She's a bundle of energy and need under him and he leans into her a bit more to try to still her. "Baby, relax. I want to take my time."

"Can you take your time after I get off? Just once?" She grins as he looks up at her. When he shakes his head at her she pouts but can't complain for long as he takes her stiff nipple back into his mouth and sucks - hard.

"So bossy," he teases, pulling his mouth off of her with one last wet noise. He makes his way down, stopping to suck hard enough to leave a mark just at the bottom of her rib cage, a secret little reminder for her next time she looks into the mirror. There's a burst of pain that's just so delicious that it makes warmth surge between her legs and the smell of her arousal is stronger, fresher.

He reaches for the button on her pants and lovingly undoes it, kissing each bit of revealed skin on the way down. She's wearing panties but he doesn't waste time on them; they come off with the pants, pushed down until she can kick them off herself.

He settles down there, nosing at her clit and just lightly brushing his lips over her cunt, swollen and flushed pink and glistening. He licks teasingly, just dragging the tip of his tongue enough to part her lips. She whines and reaches down to get a fist full of his hair, letting him know in no uncertain terms what she thinks of this speed.

He works her with his mouth, fucking her with his tongue and then replacing it with his fingers, mouthing her clit until she's panting hard, arm flung over her mouth to muffle the sounds. She knows their children are all heavy sleepers but she still doesn't trust herself not to scream. She's close, _so_ close, when he pulls his mouth away. She can't stop the cry of protest that tears itself out of her throat as she thrusts her hips up as if to chase the pleasure his tongue was giving her.

He evades her though, nipping at her thigh with his teeth, sucking another hickey there. "Something not quite even about this..."

Vala doesn't particularly _care_ but something about the gleam in his eye intrigues her. "What..."

He moves getting up and taking his own pants off. He's not wearing anything under them and it makes her moan in pleasure, watching his cock spring free as soon as he pushes the waistband of the sweats down. When he gets back on bed he lays near the head and turns onto his side, leaning in to kiss her softly. He tastes like her and it makes her breath catch just a little. His hand on her shoulder guides her down though, and he tosses a pillow to the middle of the bed and grins. Vala catches on quickly, scrambling into a new position, her head even with his hips. He parts her thighs again, draping one leg over his shoulder, and when she moans her breath blows warm on his rigid cock. She mouths at the shaft while his tongue goes back to teasing her clit, shudder inducing after the momentary break in stimulation.

Cam likes this a lot better, too. Vala has always had amazing multitasking skills and being a mother has only honed them. She takes the head of his cock into her mouth and sucks on it lovingly, tracing the fat head with her tongue and swiping over the tip, pressing her tongue into it to draw out the pre-come.

Cam moans against her and the sound vibrates into her flesh, making her gasp. It's like one continuous feedback circuit of sensation, a steady back and forth that winds them both up. Vala was closer already, gets there, first, and Cam doesn't mind. She pulls off of his dick to gasp, not wanting to accidentally cause him harm, but as soon as the sharp spasms start to fade she's back at it, licking down his cock, sucking one of his balls into her mouth and rolling it against her tongue.

He's trying to keep his hips steady and it was easier when he had a goal - to make her come. Why can't he have the same goal again? He parts the lips of her pussy and teases at her labia and just dips a short distance into her opening. She's tight from orgasm and her juices are still flowing.

When her lips catch a particularly sensitive spot on his cock he jerks, uncontrollably, and moans against her sex. She's doing wicked things to his cock and balls and his lips are having a hard time concentrating on finding her clit again. Luckily, his wife is very helpful and she angles herself back further and lowers her cunt to his mouth again. Her clit is still throbbing and ready. He captures the tight bud and starts lightly suckling it.

Vala's full of him. Not in the usual way, but her lungs keep inhaling his scent. Arousal so obvious with the smell that's wafting off him. She's playing with his balls still her hand squeezing and tugging, just gently and slowly. Bringing him to the edge and then rubbing him away from it. She's having trouble concentrating again as his lips suckle her. His tongue is teasing the tip of her sensitive little organ and she repays him in kind. Her mouth finds itself back at his head. The red, flared flesh beckoning her to love it.

There's no reason not to take the tip into her mouth and match the little flickering tempo that he's fluttering against her clit. The cool air of the room doesn't even touch her skin now there is so much heat radiating off her body. She can feel the flush all over her from ramping up to her second orgasm. The salt of his pre come is smooth going down her throat and she takes him in. This is almost more intimate than sex. Both of them kissing the places that give pleasure, worshiping, devouring, enjoying and loving.

The more he drips and leaks against her tongue the more aroused she gets. It's as if she's taking in his fluids and turning them into her own wetness. His cock is solid against her palm as she holds him steady and his teeth scrape across her clit just as she pulls off his head and she yelps. Then stills - listening for foot falls out in the hall. Cam keeps going, however, bringing her clit to its state of full, complete excitement. She's craving him inside her as soon as she knows they aren't going to be interrupted. The tickle of his fingertips tracing her thighs and the indents of her hip sends shivers down her spine and she makes the decision for them. She flips around before he can stop her.

His cock is still in her hand and she gives him a couple quick jerks to pull some new fluids from him. She loves him entering her body when there is come on the head of his cock. It's a mental thing - the thought of their fluids mingling immediately - that turns her on so much. Both of them watch as she directs him into her sheath. The fullness makes her head fall back and he's gripping her hips, not letting her move yet. It's too much.

Cam makes a sound full of raw wanting and takes a long, slow breath... gathering himself, getting himself under control before he releases his grip slightly. In typical Vala fashion she takes the offered inch and immediately turns it into a mile, rising and dropping down onto him.

Cam knows he's too close and she's too far away and he needs to do something to level the playing field. He reaches down and puts his hand between them, palm upturned and fingers spread around his cock so that when she comes back down he's cupping her. She gasps at the unexpected contact and then grins when his fingers arch up, rubbing and playing with her. He fingers her around his cock, pressing in.

Vala's eyes widen and she bucks again. He's feeling her and himself at the same time, her body stretching more to accommodate him. "Too much?" He asks, voice gravelly.

She hesitates, then shakes her head. "No... but..."

"What?" He asks, wanting to know all the dirty thoughts inside her head.

She reaches down and moves his hand... moves it _back_ so that his finger, slick from being inside of her, rubs against her asshole.

Inside her, Cam's cock twitches hard. "Yeah?" He wants, he _definitely_ wants, but he still feels the need to make sure they're on the same page here.

She grins and nods and squeezes her cunt around him. He wiggles his finger against her, making sure the lubrication is enough, before he pushes in just the tip of his finger. "You just want..."

"For now, just that," she says. "Maybe later... this." She squeezes her internal muscles again so there's no mistaking what 'this' is.

The idea of being inside her there, something they've never done before, makes white spots dance in front of his vision when he clenches his eyes shut. He pulls his finger back out and says, "Lube?"

She leans over, managing not to dislodge herself, and pulls out the small bottle. They don't need it that often but they keep it just in case. He makes sure his finger is nice and slick and then starts again, moving slowly so he doesn't hurt her, paranoid about causing her pain but so turned on by what he's doing.

Vala is too, he can tell. There's a flush high on her cheeks that spreads down to her chest, and her nipples are rock hard. She's trying to be still but keeps moving on him, unable to help herself. "You like it?" He asks.

She nods, eyes half shut with the pleasure.

"Fuck yourself on me," he orders her.

She moves nice and slow. The double penetration is awkward at first until she finds the perfect angle to raise and lower herself at. He's pressing towards himself with the finger buried in her ass and she wonders if he can feel his cock inside her that way.

There's no need for her to ask. "I can feel the head of my cock moving into you." Cam's answering her question without her having to voice it. "This alright still?"

Everything is feeling exquisite to him. Her body squeezing his erection and finger all at once. He opens his eyes and leans up to watch her body swallow him. Vala's gorgeous, always, riding him her breast bounce and stomach and thighs contract with the effort of sex. There's a sheen of sweat that glistens on her skin as she works herself towards her second climax.

"Really..." She squeaks as he twitches inside her. "Good." She's so full of him. She never thought of anal sex before, never really wanted to try it. It was always something a little taboo to even her. But she trusts Cam, with everything. There was no doubt that he knew her. This is something that makes her hum with passion. There is a gap where she can't get all of his erection into her because of the angle of his hand so she makes a decision. They don't do this normally either. She pulls off him and grabs his hand.

Before he can say boo about it she's turned with her back to him and her sheath is covering his cock again.

"You're still fast, honey." He misses watching her expressions already. Until they aren't looking at each other while making love he doesn't notice how much pleasure he gets from watching her face. But he knows why she did it. She wants to give him better access while she rides his dick harder. Cam has no problem with her decision.

"Can you keep your finger inside me... while I move?" She's breathy with her request and he answers that he can. There isn't much longer after he enters her again while she waits with his cock buried to the hilt inside her. "I'm going to start." She pulls up and the feeling makes them both shudder.

Now every stroke he can feel sort of what she feels. The ridges of his dick and how they move inside her. She clenches around him and does it again. Everything is heightened for him and Cam's afraid he's going to blow his load soon.

They're so in tune with each other, read each other so well, that it doesn't take long to find the right rhythm between them. He lets her do all the work - the less he moves the better anyway, because he's breathing hard and fast and trying to think about anything except how she feels around him, how he feels inside of her.

Vala's working enough for both of them though. Sweat makes her skin glisten and glow in the low light of the room and he watches the slender column of her spine, the way her hair is wild and curling the more overheated she gets.

"So good!" She says, hips snapping back and forth on him more quickly. He's glad she's losing control because he's so close, almost there. If he could see her face he'd be gone already, he knows.

She reaches back with her other hand and grasps the fingers not buried inside of her in hers, another point of contact. Cam doesn't even realize it but he's muttering under his breath a litany of things, praising and begging and asking her to come.

She laughs breathlessly and before the sound can fade it's swallowed by a gasp and he watches her back arch, chest thrust out, ass grinding back onto his hand. He feels her come two-fold and he falls headfirst into his own orgasm, finger slipping from her so he can grasp at her hip with lube-tacky fingers and pull her firmly back onto him while he empties inside of her.

Once he's done she gingerly slides off of him and turns, grinning and winking and grasping him before he's softened to sink down onto him again. He growls at the burst of overstimulation on still twitching nerve endings but it's worth it once he's wrapped in her warmth again. Some of his come has found its way out in the shift, smearing stickily between them. She swipes at it with her fingers and brings them to her mouth, sucking it off with relish.

"That was..." Cam laughs, once he's regained the ability to speak. "_Wow._"

"Mmm," she agrees, leaning forward and snuggling against his chest. He rubs her back and smiles, enjoying how cuddly she can be after.

"Didn't see that one coming." He kisses her forehead, her temple, wherever he can reach. "Have you uh... done that before?"

Vala hesitates and then doesn't answer. Instead she rolls off of him and disappears into the bathroom, returning a moment later with a damp cloth in her hand. She wipes him up carefully and tosses the cloth toward the dirty clothes basket. One perk to her being on top; no wet spot, so she doesn't bother with the sheets.

Cam thinks that she's going to ignore the question and he's not going to push it, so he's surprised when after turning off the lights and getting back into bed beside him she says, "I haven't, myself. But Qetesh did."

She doesn't talk about Qetesh often. Cam figures there's a lot about her life that she wants to just leave buried and he's okay with that. He trusts that if there are things she needs him to know, she'll tell him. "Qetesh?"

"Well, she was a sex goddess." Vala's voice is wry. "She wasn't exactly shy about... well, anything, really. She did any number of horribly sordid things that would make you blush."

"And you had to just... sit back, along for the ride?"

"More or less. I could feel... everything. I remember everything. I'm not exactly what one would call _shy_ myself, and I never have been, but there are some experiences I couldn't imagine ever wanting to recreate... ever being able to without recalling that." She rests her head on his shoulder and tugs his arm until he puts it around her. He holds her, cuddling her to him. "But this was nice. Maybe there were some things that now I could..."

"Only if you want," Cam says, always cautious. "You know I'd never push you."

She lifts her head and kisses his cheek. "I know. And that's why I want to."


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

"Mommy, why are you naked?"

The little voice is right next to her ear and she opens her eyes to find Lyra climbing in beside her. Shit. They didn't re-dress. Which means daddy is naked too.

"I got too warm, little one." She sees her tank and panties on the floor. "Can you grab my shirt and undies? They are right there. It's cooler now."

Lyra pops out from where she'd just settled, always willing to help her mother. "Here momma." She watches her before getting back in. "Had bad dreams. I can sleep next to you?"

Vala's glad that she chose mom and not dad for comfort this time. "Yeah, baby, whatever you need. What did you dream about?"

There's a loud yawn and lips smacking followed by a wiggling of her little body to get comfortable. "Dunno. But I woked up scared. You looked less asleep then daddy." She thinks about it for a moment. "Daddy looks really sleeping."

"Oh, I'm sure he is, honey." It makes her giggly inside - the fact that he's so sated from her that even Lyra can see how hard he's out. "You go back to sleep, mommy's got you."

It doesn't take long for her to be out like a log. Light, soft snores escape her and Vala reaches behind her to wake Cam. Hopefully without waking Lyra. Her fingers stroke along his side and she can feel him shift and his arms are around her. He's still asleep though, his breathing deep and even. It makes her heart want to burst with all the feelings that are rushing through her. Even in sleep if she beckons him he comes to her. His arms flop and fumble and she's being pulled tighter.

"Cam? Darling." She twists around as best she can to get closer to his ear. "Wake up. Please, wake up." She keeps calling for him quietly until she can feel the change. He's awake.

"Vala?" The hand on her hip leaves and she can feel him brushing it over his face. "What time is it?"

"I'm not sure... You should put some pants on though." He's soft against her right now but that's likely to change.

"Why-" He can't finish, she nudges him to look and he sees the bundle of little girl under the blankets. "Oh. Whoops. Did you..."

"No. I forgot too. She asked me why I was naked." Vala grins at him as he shifts to get up and find pants.

"I didn't even think about it... I'm sorry, honey." He kisses her lips before getting up. His pants are on the other side of the room and just thinking about how they ended up there makes him happy. "You put me in a coma with those fancy sexy moves of yours."

She holds her hand out for him as he comes back. "Oh, I'm pretty sure all the fancy moves last night were yours."

He spoons her up when he gets back in and reaches around to stroke Lyra's hair. "She have a nightmare?" Vala just nods. "Didn't know what it was again?"

"Nope." It breaks her heart every time her little girl loses sleep because of what was done to her.

"She'll be okay," Cam says, letting his eyes slip shut again. Sleep is beckoning him still and he doesn't wait too much to give into it.

Vala's up for a while longer, Lyra's little body cuddled to her. She doesn't wake again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

At breakfast Cam can't stop grinning at her.

She recognizes the grin. It's the grin of a man that just got laid and keeps thinking about it. Of course, that makes her think about it too - makes her flush with the memories and feel that surge of heady power from knowing what she can do to him with her body.

It's an entirely different thing than the way Qetesh used this same body to control people; a world of difference, enough that one doesn't even trigger memories of the other.

She thinks of the nights that it kept her up remembering pain and death and torture and sex, and how to Qetesh they were all the same. She looks at Lyra, that sweet little face smeared with milk, unbrushed hair and innocent laugh.

She thinks of her own mother and how young she was when they were separated. Older than Lyra, older than Adria even, but still - so young.

"Mom?" Adria says, getting her attention. Vala's surprised to see Adria standing right there. She hadn't even heard her walk up. She reaches out and brushes her thumb under Vala's eye. "You're crying."

That gets Cam's attention away from where he'd been fixing Adria's lunch, with Tyler's 'help'.

"I'm fine," Vala says, hugging Adria briefly. Tyler moves off of the stool he was on, wiping bread crumbs from his fingers onto his shirt, and throws himself at Vala for a hug, too. "I promise, both of you, I'm fine."

Lyra seems like the only one oblivious. She's fully invested in her mushy cereal. When she looks up at Vala she seems unconcerned and that makes Vala happier than anything. Yes, it'd taken Vala herself years to get over what happened to her, but Vala had been alone until Cam. Lyra has a family - they're all a family and they all have each other - and that makes Vala confidence that Lyra's nightmares will fade.

"You sure, mommy?" Tyler's worried still and he won't let her off the hook that easily. His mother crying upsets him a lot.

She kisses his temple. "I am. Now go finish your sister's lunch. It's her last week of school and we don't want her to have to eat no good lunches, do we?"

Tyler shakes his head and scurries off. The look that she's getting from her husband when she looks back over tells her that he wants an explanation for the tears. She's glad he's busy right now because she feels a little silly for crying.

There's a crinkle of paper that brings her out of thought again and she can hear the school bus tires on the gravel outside.

"Have a good day, Addy." Cam kisses her and she runs out the door yelling her goodbyes to everyone. He glances at the clock as if he doesn't know the bus picks her up everyday at 7:25am. "I have a few minutes."

His lips brush her ear as his arms circle her waist. "It wasn't anything."

"Doesn't matter if it was anything or nothing. I still want to know why you were standing over here crying." He hugs her tighter and looks over at Tyler and Lyra. "Buddy, you're in charge. Mommy and I will be right back."

He grips her hand and pulls her into the next room.

"Cam-" His lips brush hers to quiet her.

"If you don't want to tell me..." He's hurt and she can hear it in the tone of his voice.

She wraps her arms around his shoulders and buries her face against his neck. "It's silly. I was just thinking how lucky the kids were to have us and how amazing it was that we have them. It reminded me about when I had nothing. When I was a slave to a snake. I didn't even know I was crying until Adria said something."

"They are lucky," Cam says. He knows that he himself was lucky too - he grew up with two parents that loved him, not a perfect family but as close to perfect as he's beginning to think really exists. He and his brother both grew up stable, happy, healthy, and knowing that they could pretty much do anything they put their minds to. His kids will have the same - both from Cam and Vala, and from Cam's own parents. "They're lucky because they have you. You are one amazing mother."

Vala laughs derisively and Cam knows even if she acts like she's joking, deep down, she means it. He shakes his head, not letting her get away with that.

"You were amazing from the moment you held Adria in your arms," Cam says. "And you can't tell me you weren't. I was there, remember?"

Vala does remember. The thought of that is what makes her smile. She blinks back more tears, focusing on his words instead. "I remember."

"You held her and it looked like the most natural thing in the world. You wanted her. You wanted to keep that baby safe, and you did. Most people wouldn't have known how to fight, in your position. When the IOA tried to take her? When they told us she was a danger? You kept her safe."

"It was you, too," Vala says, shaking her head slightly. "It was mostly you."

"No, it wasn't." Cam argues with her. "I did what I could - maybe opened a few doorways - but it was you. And you'd do the same for Tyler or for Lyra."

"Wouldn't need to, for them," she says, another reminder of how different Adria is. "Unless one of them is taken again by-"

"Don't." Cam cuts her off. "No need to even talk about that. We've got more security than you'd realize around here and nothing like that is going to happen again."

Vala kisses him. "Thank you. You need to get to work."

"Before Walter makes a house call to chew me out..." Cam grimaces.

"Don't think he wouldn't do it," Vala says, laughing.

"Trust me, I know he would."

They walk back into the kitchen hand in hand to find Tyler and Lyra.

Both children are happy and giggling. Lyra's done something to amuse her brother.

"Lyra's so funny, mommy." Tyler peeks over at his parents. Lyra's just smiling and innocently eating her breakfast.

Cam takes his hand from hers and loops his arm around her shoulders, pulling his lips close to her ear. "You plus the kids. That's the happily ever after I never knew I wanted."

All Vala can do is agree as he kisses her cheek before kissing both kids and waving as he rushes out the door. A smile creases her cheeks as she settles back at the table - ready to start the day with her babies. She tousles Tyler's hair and revels in how happy he is. Lyra's giggling again too.

"Alright kids. What shall we do today?" They both toss out a dozen ideas and she tosses a few of her own back. Just happy to be. Cam and Adria will be home soon enough and their family will be complete again. Complete and perfect.

There's really nothing she wants more in life. And she never even knew she wanted it until she had it. Thank goodness for small favors and lots of luck... And for Cameron.

Thank all the twists and turns of the universe for him.

The End


End file.
